


Danganronpa: Below Zero

by stropsian



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Original, Fan Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Fangan, Fangan Ronpa, Gen, Multi, Murder Mystery, No canon spoilers, Other, Screenplay/Script Format, Semi-Ilustrated, TEN too - Freeform, no jk you will love ryou, you either love ryou or hate ryou, you'll also love aapo it's non negotiabe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:21:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 65,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25376095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stropsian/pseuds/stropsian
Summary: You wake up in a freezing cold room. The walls are all white and clean, almost as sterile as a hospital. You take a look around, and notice that in each corner, there is a bed. People are arguing in the middle of the room, and they look over to you.You take a moment to remember who you are.---Your name is Aapo Heikkinen, and you have woken up in a research station in the middle of the Arctic. The only way to get out? Get away with murder.--Danganronpa: Below Zero is completely cut off from the Danganronpa canon. No spoilers will be included in this story![STATUS: Chapter 1 [1-4]: It's Looking Up or Looking Down][Updates are inconsistent, but I try to update every two weeks.]
Kudos: 9





	1. Prologue [0-0]: If Dreams Can Come True, What Does That Say About Nightmares?

**Hello! Welcome to Danganronpa: Below Zero! This is a fanganronpa that I began working on about a month ago from the date I'm posting the prologue, and I'm very happy to be able to put out the first few chapters! As of 12/9/2020, I have started to rewrite the prologue and the first few parts of chapter 1! There are different characters, as I decided some were rather bland and that I needed to step up my game, lol.**

_**This is in Script Format, which is written out like as... well... a script. Characters will talk like this:** _

Aapo: Yep, yep! It's me!

**And any thoughts/narration are written in bold. Now that this whole spiel is over, I present to you: Danganronpa, Below Zero!**

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FOOL: Hello there, [LOVER], I have something to speak to you about. Do you have a minute? It's important, and we don't have all day.

LOVER: Oh? Of course! Let me set my things down real quick, and I'll be right with ya!

**The sound of a bag dropping can be heard. Next, the movement of a chair. Finally, the sound of paper being put onto a desk.**

FOOL: Thank you. This is about that request we made two weeks ago. Now, I have to sign some papers, and you will too, but we got permission to host outside of the country.

LOVER: Really?! That’s wonderful, [FOOL]! We’re one step closer to finally getting this started! I guess that we haven't been doing all of this for nothing, huh? I cannot WAIT to set up in... in... where are we going to host it again?

FOOL: ...You forgot?

LOVER: You can't blame me!! Exams were hard... I don't think I'd be able to remember anything after those.

FOOL: Fair enough, I suppose. We got permission to use an old and abandoned facility in Antarctica. It’s a really big one, too. We’re going to have to modify it a bit, we’re going to have to spend a _little_ more than expected so they don’t freeze to death, but… it's not that big of an issue, I believe.

LOVER: Oh my god! 

LOVER: We're going to be so famous! That's like... a never before seen location! I would know, I did... a lot of research on older games... 

LOVER: That's beside the point though! Everyone is going to love us! Mom and Dad are going to love me, and you're going to finally get to live the life you want to live! Isn't that simply amazing?

**There’s a silence between the two figures talking. A small sigh can be heard from one of them.**

FOOL: I suppose it is. Although I most definitely wouldn’t put it like that. It's going to be… rewarding.

LOVER: Right, rewarding! That word. About how long do you think it'll take for us to get it all set up now?

FOOL: I can see it happening in… about another month or two.

**One of the figures lets out a squeal.**

LOVER: That's awesome! There's little wait, yet so much to do! Man... 

**There's a small vibration sound.**

LOVER: Oh, shoot! Hey, can I cut this a little short? I have to make dinner tonight, and I need to be home soon.

FOOL: ...You can go. Meet me here tomorrow so we can start on the paperwork. 

LOVER: Alright! I'll see you tomorrow then! Bye-bye!

FOOL: Goodbye.

**More rustling sounds can be heard, as well as a small, cheerful laugh as one of the figures leaves, leaving only one left.**

FOOL: What an idiot.


	2. Prologue [0-1]: If Dreams Can Come True, What Does That Say About Nightmares?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You wake up in a cold room.

_**PROLOGUE: 0-1: IF DREAMS CAN COME TRUE, WHAT DOES THAT SAY ABOUT NIGHTMARES?** _

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**I’ve never been particularly sensitive to the cold. I lived in Finland for a decent part of my life, about a third of it or so? About that long. When I moved to Japan, my parents had made sure to find somewhere almost as cold so that I wouldn’t have too much trouble adjusting. I’ve lived in Japan since I was five, and.. Because of them, I haven’t had too much trouble adjusting to everything here. God, my parents are such kind people…**

**Ah. I’m going on a tangent, like always. I haven’t even properly introduced myself yet! I apologize. My name is Aapo Heikkinen, the Ultimate Poet. I recently got accepted to go to a really famous Academy called… I can’t remember the name of it. That’s weird, I’m sure I would know the name of the school I’m going to… maybe it's just nerves. I really hope it's just nerves, I don't want to think about the fact I might have some type of amnesia so young. Even so, I couldn’t be happier! My talents as a poet are finally going to get recognized, and even if I’m not one for too much attention, I also like a little bit of it from time to time. I might not be an Edgar Allen Poe, but I like to think I’m pretty good!**

**Back on topic, though. Earlier, I said that I have never been bothered by the cold before. So when I wake up, and the temperature is nearly unbearable, I get concerned. I open my eyes slightly as I groan, a hand going over my forehead. This… this isn’t my own room. I’m not at home. My room at home is covered in flags and has some pretty brown walls. This room was completely white. It’s cold, and it looks about as sterile as a hospital room. It’s eerie, I’ll give it that. Definitely not a good feeling.**

**Man, was I drugged or something? I feel awful. As my eyes open just the slightest bit more, I look around the room (I think it’s a bedroom?), spotting three other people in the room looking directly at me. What a thing to wake up to. One of the people in the room was wearing a vest, and had a really agitated look on his face. There was a taller boy with long hair between the vest person and a person who looks like they just came out of a circus.**

??? 1: Oh. He’s finally awake. Wonderful, that’s just…fucking wonderful. Another idiot to deal with...

??? 2: Darling, don't sound so down about it! At least now we’re going to be able to figure out our situation easier! At least I think so...

??? 1: Like I would listen to some fucking clown. Call me darling again and I’ll make sure you freeze to death. Fuck off.

??? 2: _Deary,_ I’m not an f-word clown! I _lead_ the circus!

**_Oh. So that person was_** **_straight out of the circus. I’m not surprised._**

??? 1: Same thing. Like I said, fuck off.

**God, that’s… that’s so rude! Why is he being so mean to the circus person? ...Why did the circus person just say “f-word” instead of the actual word? I tend to do that too, since cussing isn't what I usually do. It just isn't a part of my vocabulary. Either way, that’s actually a little endearing! ...No time to think like that, you just woke up in a room with three strangers! Get back on track, Aapo!**

??? 3: HEY, FIGHTING ISN'T ANY GOOD! LOOK AT HIM! POOR CHILD LOOKS TERRIFIED, DON'T YOU THINK? [Points at me] LOOK AT HIM, HIS FACE IS SO SO VERY PALE! PERHAPS YOU TWO SHOULD TRY TO BE BETTER! FOR HIS SAKE, YOU KNOW? WE'RE ALL IN SUCH A TERRIBLE, AWFUL, NO GOOD SITUATION AND-

**Oh. They’re pointing me out, and loudly too. The tall one sounds like they don't know what an inside voice is... Do I look uncomfortable? I certainly couldn’t tell if I did. The two that were fighting turned to look at me, the one with a vest sneering. I already felt intimidated by him, yikes.**

??? 1: Well? Are you going to say anything? Or are you just going to sit there and watch clown fucker and I fight? Seriously, it’s really weird to stare.

**Oh. I wasn’t meaning to stare, but… never mind. I got up from the bed I was sitting in and walked to the middle of the room. How did I not wake up earlier? These two are fighting very loudly, and not to mention how loud the third is. I’m going to get a headache if they don’t be quiet… Oh, I should probably start talking now.**

Aapo: Ah, sorry, I'm still waking up, I didn't mean to stare. Also, I don’t go by he/him! I go by they/them, uh… Keep that in mind, please?

**The so called clown’s eyes widened, before lighting up. The vest wearing person looks down slightly but makes no comment.**

??? 2: Ah! So do I! What a pleasant little thing to have in common. Nice to meet you, dear.

Aapo: Oh! You're nonbinary too? That is so cool... I'm so used to being the only enby I know.

??? 2: Well, today is your lucky day, darling! …Or unlucky, based on this situation.

??? 1: You’re right it’s fucking unlucky, especially with you around…

??? 3: HUSH YOUR MOUTHS. HERE. NAO-SAN, INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO THEM! SAE-SAN AND I CAN INTRODUCE OURSELVES AFTERWARDS!

Nao(?): Oh! Alright! Here goes nothing…

Nao:(?): Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, everything in between and none at all! I’m Shujin Nao. I'm the ringmaster of the Nao circus, a true pleasure to meet all of you!

**What a dramatic intro! It’s actually very cool, but… I don’t comment on it. Need to get things moving, you know? I need to get to the bottom of what happened to all of us…**

Aapo: Oh! Nice to meet you, Nao-san! I’m Aapo Heikkinen, Ultimate Poet! Uh… do you know anything about where we are? This certainly doesn’t look like my bedroom… and why is it so cold?

??? 1: Bold of you to assume that the clown can even _understand_ our situation. I don't even know if they have a brain up there.

Nao: Hey! Really, darling, it’s not like you know either…and I'm not going to comment on that last thing at all.

??? 3: DON'T EVEN START, YOU TWO.

**Man, these two were at each other's throats. What in the world had happened between the two for them to grow so intolerant of each other? I just woke up and I’m already feeling exhausted again. I definitely had a headache or something, but now it's just... so much worse. When I get out of here, I’m going to definitely need some medicine…**

Aapo: Yeah, fighting isn’t going to do any good. Uh… what happened while I was asleep?

Nao: This rude little man here has been arguing with me ever since I woke up! All I did was talk to him and he got mad!

??? 1: That’s just… that’s literally a lie. You’ve been calling me patronizing names like ‘darling’ and ‘dear’ the entire time. As if I’m not, oh, you know, a well known Game Show Host that doesn't want to have someone pretend to be friendly with me? Your ego is also _really_ inflated! Like... man.

Nao: So is yours! Dear, my nicknames are just nicknames. Leave me be.

??? 3: I'M GOING TO LOSE MY MIND IF THE TWO OF YOU DO NOT SHUT UP.

**The two of them look to the taller boy, who was in the middle of them. He looked like he was going to explode at any given moment, and honestly? I can't blame him.**

Aapo: Okay, enough of that. Uh… Is there anything outside this room? Have you guys done any like… exploration? Or have you just been standing there arguing for the entire time I was asleep?

??? 1: We haven’t gone outside the room yet. The door’s locked.

Aapo: It’s locked?

??? 3: YEP YEP! PROBABLY KIDNAPPERS.

**The vest boy's facial expression changes. He looks scared now, but only for a second. I don't blame him, honestly. The mere idea that we've been kidnapped is enough to scare everyone in the room. I take a moment to think.**

**Kidnapped? The door’s locked? Why were four people taken and put into the same room? Wouldn’t that make it easier to escape? If we were kidnapped, our kidnappers were very stupid. Even I wouldn’t do that if I kidnapped someone, and I’m not exactly the brightest crayon in the box by any means,**

Aapo: Kidnapped? I mean, it would explain why we're here with a bunch of strangers…

??? 1: Yeah. It’s also probably why the door’s locked. So that we can’t get out.

??? 3: THAT'S SO STUPID. I CAN EASILY JUST KNOW DOWN THAT DOOR. LOOK AT HOW TALL I AM! 

??? 1: You’re like... inhumanly tall. Your help is probably the only good help since everyone else is fucking tiny.

??? 3: [Gasps] ANY HELP IS GOOD HELP!

Nao: You aren’t exactly helpful either, Sae-dono! You’re a few inches shorter than me, maybe five or so? Let’s not mention Heikkinen-dono either, they're even shorter than you. Overall, half of this room wouldn't be too much help in breaking down a door.

**Ouch! That hurt, I’m not that small, am I?**

??? 1: I’d be more help than this one right here, they look like they would fucking die if they tried applying pressure to anything.

**They let out a small, cynical laugh before the room went silent. I feel a little awkward again!… God, I haven’t even asked their names yet! I’m so rude, I… Well, it’s never too late to ask!**

Aapo: ...Anyways, uh… Who are you two? Before we try to find a way out, I want to get your names down in my mind so that it-

??? 1: Ryou Saemonsaburou. I host a game show. That one over there is TEN, drives a train, won't tell us their real name. Done. Now quit wasting time. Feel free to call me Sae-sama, I understand my last name is rather long.

TEN: ONE, I USE ALL PRONOUNS! FEEL FREE TO USE ANY PRONOUNS. I LIKE THEY/THEM AND XE/XEM THE MOST THOUGH!

TEN: SECOND, I COULD INTRODUCE MYSELF, YOU MEANIE!

**Well, that’s... alright then! Just cut me off like that, that’s fine. Not like I actually had something to say, jeez. He even asked me to refer to him as Sae-sama, what a prick… and I’ve never heard of that surname before, should I ask about it? Whatever, showing that I care is probably going to end up making things worse, so... I turn away from the group and walk towards the door. I grip the doorknob and try to turn it, and to my surprise, it opens with no difficulty. Did they even try to get out?**

Aapo: …The door’s not locked.

**Everybody’s facial expression fell into one of confusion as soon as I said that, and I stood to the side to show that it indeed was unlocked. Nao was the first to say something about it.**

Nao: It was just a few minutes ago, darling! How-

Sae: It’s pretty fucking obvious. The door was going to open as soon as Heikkinen-kun woke up.

**Ouch. Okay. I don’t want to take offense so early, but man, this guy’s ego is giant. I mean, it sure as hell doesn't FEEL that obvious.**

Nao: Wish you would have told us that, darling, so that we could have woken Heikkinen-Dono earlier! ...Or did you not actually know that? You know, lying isn’t a good thing to do-

**Sae looks down, and you can hear the grinding of teeth if you listened hard enough. TEN seems to take notice.**

TEN: THAT'S IT! STOP FIGHTING OR ELSE I'LL HAVE TO DO SOMETHING VERY MEAN AND PROBABLY TORTUROUS, LIKE RAMBLING ABOUT MY HYPERFIXATIONS UNTIL YOU BOTH PASS OUT FROM SHEER HATRED AND EXHAUSTION.

Aapo: Seriously! We could have been kidnapped and you two are fighting like toddlers. If we were kidnapped, we need to find our captors! Or maybe a way to escape.

**There’s a bit of silence between the four of us, before Sae gives a small sigh. Nao looked a little irritated, but still had a smile on their face. Weird.**

Sae: …Fine.

Nao: I agree, I shall now take my attention away from the filth next to me and-

**With that, TEN grabs both of them by the arms and begins to drag them to the door. This actually seems to make Sae freak out a little bit, which is odd. He flinches at the sudden touch and, well… he looks uncomfortable. I don't exactly blame him. These are strangers, after all.**

Sae: H-Hey! Watch it, Mx! I’ll have you know-

TEN: STOP ARGUING. ARGUE LATER, BUT WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE.

**Something about Sae seems to have softened as he looked up at TEN. He sighs and then lets TEN pull him along. Kind of like a silent “fine, whatever.” He can’t even manage some sort of sorry? I don’t like being mean to people, but Sae seems kind of self-centered… so does Nao-san, but… not the point right now, Aapo!**

**With no further distractions or arguments, all four of us are finally able to leave the room. That took way longer than I expected. Nao closes the door behind them, and we take a look at the scene. It looks like we’re in a hallway? It was just as white and clean as the room. The only difference is that there are a few more doors down the hallway. I begin to walk down the hallway.**

Nao: Darling, wait! Come back here. There’s a sign on the outside of the door, I think you’d like to take a look at it?

Aapo: Oh! I’m sorry! I didn’t see it, let me take a look.

**Jeez, that was embarrassing! God, I need to think more before I do things. Turning back around, I checked out the sign that Nao was pointing to. On it read the words “Ryou, Aapo, Shujin, and TEN Dorm.” Dorm? Our kidnappers were probably expecting us to be staying here for a while. That’s actually kind of not good, I was planning on escaping and going home soon, you know. Or maybe this is the school I got accepted to! ...**

TEN: …DOES THAT MEAN THAT THERE ARE OTHER PEOPLE HERE? THERE'S A SIGN SAYING THAT THIS IS THE DORM HALLWAY DOWN THERE, SO...

**That’s actually a good question! There are four other bedrooms ahead of us, with one of the doors open… Maybe it was our kidnappers? It seems a little unlikely… but we didn’t really have many ideas we could go with. Perhaps it’s time to split up and start searching, because past the hallway here were more areas. This place is oddly big for what it was for. Who'd even put all of this effort in to kidnap people?**

Aapo: Should we split up? There’s more to explore, I see…

Sae: I’d love to split up, actually. I would be so delighted to split up.

TEN: OH HUSH. DO YOU WANT TO GO IN PAIRS OR ON OUR OWN?

Aapo: I think pairs would work better, so that if we're attacked, we have a chance to fight them off!

**I don’t mention that it would probably be better for Sae because he looks like he would topple over from a small gust of wind, but I definitely think it while I’m speaking. Not like I'm also unable to fight for the life of me. Nao nodes their head approvingly, which I think is good? I sure hope so!**

Nao: Sounds like a plan, deary! Heikkinen-dono, come with me. I don’t want to be left with Sae-dono.

Sae: [Under his breath] I don’t want to be left with you either…

**Before the two of them can go into a full on brawl, TEN pulls Sae away, and the two begin to head down to the other rooms in the dorm hallways. I wave goodbye, although I'm not exactly sure if they saw me. I hope they did... I would feel weird if they didn't, to be completely honest. If they didn't see me wave, then they might think I'm rude or something, and I don't want that.** ****

Nao: [Chuckles] Darling, as much as I love the spotlight, staring is just rude! That’s something you’re going to have to work on, I suppose…

Aapo: Ack, sorry! I’m not meaning to stare, I’m just spacing out!

Nao: [Laughs] Alright, sure. Let’s get going now, shall we? We do have a whole new place to look over.

**Nao begins to walk out of the dorm hallway. I scramble to follow, having to speed walk to keep up. Jeez, they’re so tall! With every step they take, their heels click and clack on the floor. It’s a really nice sound, but… I should probably talk to make this journey a little less awkward. I don't like complete silence, but then again? I'm not the best conversation starter. For a poet, I sure am bad with words sometimes.**

Aapo: Uh… You said you run the circus, right? I’ve always wanted to go to one, what’s it like?

**That seemed to be a good thing to bring up. because Nao-san immediately started to talk. Way to go, me!**

Nao: Well, it’s a very interesting life, I’ll give it that! Deary, I’ve been the main ringmaster at my circus since I was ten or so, so… I’m very accustomed to it! In fact, I’ve never even left the circus once! All of this stuff here is very new to me.

Aapo: ...What do you mean you’ve never left the circus?

**Nao laughs. They seem to be having fun talking about this but… wasn’t that a little too personal for a stranger to know? It's also just plain sad. I mean, I can't say too much, I barely leave my house, but I do leave it sometimes.**

Nao: I’ve never been outside of it before! I do all of our shows, so people that work behind the scenes would go outside to get what we needed! I don't have time for all of that, I'm such a busy person. I have the animals to take care of, costumes to design, and a lot more! Although, I'm not exactly needed for any of those since I'm just the ringmaster. I was just taught to do everything so that I wouldn't be dependent on anyone. 

Nao: Speaking of animals, I have a bunch of those! Especially elephants. One of them is actually my best friend! He's such a dear, and the crowds love him.

**Christ, why are they oversharing so much? I just met them and they’re telling me their whole life story. Is this how people normally are? I don't like it, and honestly, I want to ask them to stop. I don't think I can bring myself to, though. However, I think they can sense I’m getting uncomfortable anyways, because they stop talking.**

Nao: ...I apologize. I’ve never really had many social interactions with people, I suppose that was a little far. Instead of me, let’s talk about you! What do you do as a poet?

Aapo: Oh! I just… write things. On a paper. In my room. I'm good with words on paper, just not in person! I write a lot of metaphorical pieces, and I really like using imagery and adding a lot of detail. You know, it’s a very special way for me to express myself without having to talk to a lot of people.

Nao: That’s actually pretty cool, darling! I certainly couldn’t do that, I'm pretty much illiterate! You must be very talented.

Aapo: I mean, I suppose I am? I like getting recognized for my talents, but sometimes I just feel like I don’t really do much? People say poetry is hard, but it isn’t for me, which makes me feel like it’s too easy.

Nao: Perhaps we can write poetry together later? If it makes you feel better, I can’t really do it, and neither can anyone I’ve met who’s tried. You’re an ultimate, dear, you’re the best of the best of the best! Don’t kid yourself.

Aapo: If we escape, I’d love to write poetry with you! It sounds like fun, Nao-San! Perhaps I could try to teach you?

Nao: Ah, I’m not good at learning, deary! I’m not good at retaining information. You can surely try to, though. [Chuckles]

Aapo: ...Oh, another question I have for you. Why do you call everyone dear, deary, darling and whatnot? It’s a little strange, and those words are usually pet names for like… lovers. 

Nao: Ah, it’s simply just how I talk! I’ve talked like this for ages! It’s quite hard for me to just… call people by their names. I can try to call you Heikkinen-dono if you wish for me to, though, although I can’t say I’ll be able to remember every time.

Aapo: No, it’s fine! I don’t think I mind it, but… if that’s one of the reasons why Sae-sama was fighting with you, maybe you shouldn’t do it?

**They let out an annoyed sigh. Yikes.**

Nao: Sae-dono… is rather rude. I can admit I was being rude as well, but perhaps if he had told me to stop instead of throwing a fit, maybe I would have! He’s rather irritating… but I suppose I should stop that either way.

Aapo: [Smiles] Hey! At least you’re recognizing you went too far! I don’t know if Sae-Sama did, in all honesty. He seemed like he just shut up because everyone was getting on his butt about it. That’s very good of you!

Nao: Woah, watch your language there, dear. Those are quite filthy words for someone so innocent. Anyways, I thank you! That is very sweet of you, darling! Would it be alright if I asked you another question?

Aapo: Go ahead! It’s only fair since I’m questioning you and all…

Nao: Where are you from? Your name doesn’t exactly sound Japanese, dear.

Aapo: Oh! I’m from Finland, but I’ve been living here in Japan since I was five. I get that a lot, honestly...

Nao: What’s it like there? I haven’t exactly been outside of my circus before, so... yeah.

Aapo: Cold. Not like... not like this cold, but it’s still really cold. It’s also really pretty from what I remember! I haven’t been there since I was five, so I’m sorry for not really having the best of memory. …

Nao: It’s absolutely fine, darling! Memories are wonky… Now that I’m thinking about it, I don’t remember how I got here. Do you?

Aapo: [Shakes head] No, I don’t. All I remember is getting accepted into some really prestigious academy, I just… I don't remember the name of it.

Nao: I actually got accepted into an Academy as of recent as well! …I don’t remember the name either. That’s-

**Nao is cut off by someone bumping into them, followed by a loud shriek. Behind the person who was screaming was a person wearing a kitsune mask.**

Kitsune: “Hey there, calm down. It’s just people, no need to be afraid.”

???: [Looking up] I am SO sorry!! I didn’t see you guys because I was so focused on Fujiwara-chan! Wait… OH MY GOD! We haven’t met before! Does that mean the last room was finally opened? How many people were in there? Hironaka-shi said he only got one person, but everyone else got three! How many are there with y-

Fujiwara(?): Woah, slow down. They probably just woke up, considering they're just now getting to exploring. Take it easy, Ko-san.

Nao: Seriously, darling! That’s a lot of questions to answer in one go! Give us a second to answer, alright?

Ko(?): Oh! I’m sorry! Yes, go ahead and answer everything real quick!! I’ll be quiet while you do so, see?” [Does a zipper motion on her mouth, throwing the key away] Mmmhmm!!!

**Dear God, she’s hyper. Who let this ten-year-old child have caffeine today? …Actually, that’s a little mean. I know I didn't say it to her face but she can have a mental apology beamed into her brain.**

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_Aapo: Well, the door was finally opened, they think it’s because I woke up so late that we weren’t able to leave earlier. Sorry about that, still… Anyway, there were three other people with me! Shujin Nao, who’s next to me, was one of them! We split up into pairs to explore. The other two are Sae-sama and TEN-san! Nice to meet you, by the way. I’m Aapo Heikkinen, Ultimate Poet.

Ko(?): Oh! Oh! That’s so cool! Poetry sounds hard, I’m definitely not good at it. Frick, sorry! Stop getting off topic, Yuki! Hi!! Nice to meet you, too! My name is Yuki!! Yuki Doko, Ultimate Guzheng Player! I have a twin here! Her name is Yumi! We decided to call me Ko-san and her Do-san, but you can call me Doko-san and her Doko-sama if that's too weird! It just makes it easier, ya know? God, nothing has been easy here so far, everyone is so boring and tiring! I’m getting bored as we speak! Can you wake up fully soon so that I can hold a conversation with you? Thanks!

  


**Even with the kitsune mask on, the person behind Ko looks completely exhausted. I can’t blame him, honestly. I’m barely conversing with this girl and she’s tiring me. How long has he had to deal with her? The figure slowly stepped closer, putting their hand on their shoulder.**

Fujiwara(?): Alright, Ko-san, I think you have said quite enough. If you are bored, you can go do something else, I’ll take it from here.

Ko: [Sticking out her tongue] Nope! I’m going to talk to these people and there isn’t a thing you can do about it!

Fujiwara(?): …I suppose there isn’t anything I can do. [Sighs] Make it quick though, please. There are other things to do, and they need to check out the rest of the building.

Ko: Awwww, alright! So, question! Do either of you two know what a Guzheng even is?! Most people here know what a Koto is, but whenever I ask about a GUZHENG it’s like they don’t even know!!

Aapo: …No, I don’t know what a Guzheng is.

  
  
Ko: Aw! Fuck!

Nao: _Language,_ Ko-dono!

Ko: No! _Fuck_ you! I do what I want! You don’t tell Yuki Doko what to do!!

Fujiwara(?): Ko-san, please…

Ko: Okay, okay! Let me continue. It’s a Chinese instrument! My mama and papa bought me one when I was three! They’re kinda loaded, but don’t tell them I said that! They’ll say I’m bragging!

**You kind of are?**

Nao: Well, nobody here is Chinese, I don’t think, so that’s probably why nobody knew, darling!

Ko: [Huffs] Well, everybody else is stupid!

Fujiwara(?): [Exasperated] PLEASE, Ko-san. Perhaps it's time for you to go and do something more fun. Something like… more exploring.

Ko: Aww! Fine! I’ll go try to find the other new people! Maybe they’ll be less boring! Bye-bye now! Have fun Fujiwara-chan!

**With that, Ko ran off in the direction we came from. Jeez, she’s… it sounds rude, but I’m glad she’s gone for now. Until I’m fully rested, I’m probably not going to interact with her too much. The kitsune mask man lets out a long sigh as he extends a hand to me. I take his hand, and… it’s a handshake. He is shaking my hand. He then moves to Nao and shakes their hand too.**

Fujiwara(?): I apologize for Ko-san’s behavior, she is simply very excited. It is quite nice to meet you. My name is Asa Fujiwara. I make masks, and uh... I do commissions too. Don't downplay my prices, please...

  


Nao: What a lovely name, Fujiwara-dono dear! 

**Fujiwara's shoulders stiffen slightly at that, but then he relaxes. Bless him.**

Fujiwara: W...Why thank you, that's very kind of you to say. 

Fujiwara: Anyways, I'm sure you're very confused right now. How are you two holding?

Nao: We're quite okay, dear, just a little arguing with our previous roommates. You said that there are other people here, correct?

Fujiwara: Yes. I’ve met everyone besides the two others, so… minus those two, I’ve met about sixteen people.

**Sixteen?! Plus Sae and TEN… That’s eighteen people! Who on Earth could have pulled off a mass kidnapping? Jeez…**

Aapo: Oh, uh… That’s a lot of people. Eighteen in total, yeah?

Nao: …Correct, darling. Why would our captors kidnap so many people?

Fujiwara: We don’t know. We haven’t found anybody else here besides the people here. All we’ve found is a few rooms other than our own.

Aapo: Like what?

Fujiwara: Well, I’ve only been to my bedroom, the living room, and the kitchen. There’s also a dining room connected to the kitchen, if I remember correctly. However, I have been informed that there’s also a laundry room, a workroom, and bathrooms close to the workroom.

Nao: Deary me, we have quite a bit to catch up on…

Fujiwara: If you would like, I could show you the living room. I might have just come from there, but I was rather focused on making sure that Ko-san didn’t destroy anything. It would be beneficial to all of us if I tagged along.

**I’d normally feel bad about letting him lead the way, but…**

_  
__  
_Aapo: Ah! Alright! I’d be fine with that. Are you okay with it, Nao-san?

Nao: Fine with me, deary! I would be delighted to have you join us.

Fujiwara: …Good. Now, follow me.

**With that, Fujiwara turned around and began walking. Nao-San and I followed closely behind.**

**The hallway leading to the actual living room was also as white and clean as everywhere else in the building. I’m genuinely surprised that we weren’t taken to some run down place. Our captors sure are nice, especially for kidnappers. While we’re walking, I spot a few couches in the hallway. Odd design choice, honestly, but… sometimes you need to rest in the middle of a hallway. I get that! I get that.**

**This walk feels kind of awkward. Fujiwara wasn’t talking much, which made for a weird silence between the three of us.**

Nao: Fujiwara-dono, what’s with the mask? Not to be rude, but it seems quite out of place here.

**Oh. Okay. Thank you, Nao. A true savior to introvert-kind.**

Fujiwara: Well… I’m the Ultimate Mask Maker. I made this with my own two hands. It’s only natural that I would want to show it off in public, yes?

Nao: I suppose so.

Fujiwara: Besides, I’m not the only person here who casually wears a mask.

Aapo: ...You aren’t?

Fujiwara: There’s this little boy I was talking to earlier who wears a mask, too. Unlike me, however, he is just terrified to show his face. He was actually in the kitchen earlier with Ko-san and I, before she dragged me out of there.

Aapo: Oh! That’s cool!

  
  
Nao: I am absolutely excited to meet this individual!

  
  
Fujiwara: Nao-san, I regret to inform you of this but you are going to scare the poor thing half to death. Keep in mind that when you talk to him, you have to be less… loud.

Nao: I can certainly do that!

**I don’t think they can.**

Fujiwara: Alright. Now, we’re almost there.

**We enter a decently sized room a few minutes of walking later. It has more decoration than the other rooms, but honestly? It’s still bland. There’s a few people sitting on some chairs in the middle of the room, talking away. They look over to us as we walk a little closer. Jeez, it’s like they’re trying to make me feel awkward! I shuffle behind Fujiwara as he speaks.**

Fujiwara: Hello again, everyone.

??? 1: …Where is Yuki?

Fujiwara: She went to try and find the other people. I hope she doesn’t destroy anything.

??? 2: [To Nao-san and I, waving] Hello. That means that everyone's here now.

Fujiwara: I think so. There are two others wandering the building as of right now. I bumped into these two on the way out of here, so I simply decided to show them around. Why are you all not in the kitchen anymore? Did something happen?

??? 3: Yuharo-san was having quite a terrible time, so Hironaka-shi rushed us out while he and Ono-san calmed him down.

**...Who? This is so confusing… I mean, I guess that’s what I get for sleeping in. Fujiwara’s mask might have hidden his facial expression, but he sounded very concerned.**

Fujiwara: Can any of you explain to me what caused it, or…

??? 2: Do-san said something about-

Do(?): I can talk for myself, Tetsuya-san, thank you. I said something about my father, and he just… broke down. I wanted to apologize, but… Hironaka-shi, as we said, told me to get out of the room.

**She’s kind of snappy. Yikes. I can kinda get why though. She’s only been awake for… for however long they’ve been awake and already caused something bad to happen. She looks kind of guilty though? She looks like she didn’t mean to.**

Fujiwara: Perhaps you can go and apologize later? Not right now, of course, but when he’s calmed down.

Do(?): I was planning on it.

**The room goes silent for a moment as Fujiwara doesn’t reply. After a minute, he sighs and begins to walk away. I start to follow him, but he makes a hand motion for me to stay. I feel kind of like a puppy right now, but I stop walking.**

Fujiwara: …Excuse me, can I leave these two with you all for a moment? I wish to go check up on him without scaring the poor boy with complete strangers. [Glances at Nao-san]

Do(?): A few other people being here isn’t a big deal. Go on now, we’ll see you soon.

Fujiwara: I sincerely thank you. [Leaves the room]

**Well great. We’ve been left here with a bunch of strangers. One of them waves their hand to me, motioning for me to sit down next to them. Their style is kind of cool, but also really weird… Who dresses in all white all the time?**

Aapo: [Sitting down] Uh… hi there!

??? 2: Hello. Sorry about the commotion.

**Judging by his tone of voice, he doesn't sound sorry about the commotion. His voice is completely flat and monotone.**

??? 2: I suppose that you just woke up, right?

Nao: We indeed did, dear!

Aapo: Were we supposed to be up and about earlier??

??? 2: I believe so. It's been about three hours now, so I guess that's when everyone was supposed to wake up.

**Three hours?! I had been asleep for that long? God, I feel even more guilty about sleeping than I did before…**

??? 3: Three? It feels like it’s been a lot shorter.

Do(?): Probably because we’ve been busy. That makes it feel like time goes fast.

??? 3: Oh yeah! I knew that.

Do(?): [Laughing] Sure you did.

??? 3: Hey! I did!

??? 2: Quiet down now. We have guests, you two.

Do(?): Oh. Yeah. Alright. Should we introduce ourselves?

??? 3: I think we should! Can I go first?

??? 2: Go ahead. Take the stage, Nagai-san.

Nagai(?): I will! I shall take the rink.

Nao: Take the what now?

Nagai(?): A rink? Like an ice skating rink?

  
  
Nao: I don’t know what that is, but cool! Take that rink, dear!

  
  
Nagai(?): I… what? Okay, I… I am going to ignore that so that I may introduce myself.

Nagai(?): [Standing up] Hello hello! I’m Shoma Nagai, the best Ice Skater in the world! Revel in my beauty.

Nagai: I know, I know, I look just astonishing! Save your praise for another time!

Nao: You certainly are quite astonishing! Your nails are really nice looking, Nagai-dono! You’ll have to teach me how to do that sometime! Nice to meet you, I’m Shujin Nao, Ultimate Ringmaster!

  
  
Nagai: Oh! Thank you! Your hair is absolutely magnificent, Nao-san!

Nao: Oh I know it is, darling. I appreciate it though!

Nagai: Also, you l-

Do(?): Can you two be quiet now? We still have introductions to get through…

Nagai: [Sitting back down, looking defeated] Sorry, I get carried away sometimes…

Do(?): [Laughs] I can see that. I’ll go next, so we don’t have to waste too much time. I’m Yumi Doko, Ultimate Koto Player. You’ve probably met my twin, Yuki. I apologize in advance for her behaviors.

Aapo: Well… Fujiwara-san already apologized for her, so… even if there was no need, apology accepted!

Do: Thank you. Now, I’m done talking. Tetsuya-san?

Tetsuya(?): My name is Jin Tetsuya. I'm a Coroner. Nice to meet you.

  


Nao: …What’s a coroner?

Tetsuya: A coroner investigates dead bodies and finds out the cause of death and possible identification of the victim.

Nao: Oh. I am… uneducated in many modern things, forgive me. That sounds like quite the talent.

Tetsuya: [To Nao] Forgiven. Now, what about you? [To me] You’ve been really quiet.

**I mean… there isn’t much to say when people are introducing themselves, but I suppose I have been.**

Aapo: I’m Aapo Heikkinen! I’m the Ultimate Poet!! I write things sometimes.

Do: Well, that’s certainly a tame Ultimate. Not in a bad way, though.

**??? Am I supposed to take that as a compliment?**

Aapo: Uh… thank you? I think?

Do: Mmhm.

**This girl is nothing like her twin. They look similar, but Ko is way more sociable. Either way, both are kind of hard for me to talk to. One's too hyper and then this one just makes me feel stupid.**

Do: Now that all of that is out of the way, can you tell us about the other two?

Aapo: Yeah, we can! I woke up today and saw Nao-san fighting with Sae-sama. TEN-san had to stop them from fighting!! You’ll meet them soon I think!! Sae-sama is wearing a vest and has pink eyes, and TEN-san is the biggest person here, most likely!!! Sorry, those are like… the best descriptors I got for now! Not really in the ‘poet who needs to say a long metaphor describing someone’ kind of mood right now, sorry.

Do: It’s alright. Don't apologize.

**There’s a small silence again. Jeez, this girl is just… really hard to talk to. It's mostly just her being bland.**

Nagai: Yeah, it’s alright, and we’ll keep that in mind! They’ll probably end up here soon, seeing as this is like… the first accessible place, excluding the hallways leading to here.

Nao: Oh… Perhaps we should get going then.

Aapo: Huh? Fujiwara-san isn’t back yet, though! Wasn’t he supposed to show us around?

Nao: [Whispering] If I have to be around Sae-dono for another minute, dear, I will lose it. Perhaps we can just explore on our own.

**…I mean, I guess we could? I just… don’t know how to get anywhere. Wait… that’s the point of exploring.**

Aapo: I guess we could? Uh… Do any of you know the closest place to here?

Nagai: That would be the kitchen, although… yeah. Perhaps you can go to the work room? It’s just down the hall there. [Points to a hall across from where he was sitting]

Aapo: Oh! Okay! It was fun talking to you all!

Do: I suppose it was.

**…Silence yet again. Yikes.**

Tetsuya: Goodbye. We'll let Fujiwara-san know which way you went when he gets back.

Nao: Thank you, Tetsuya-dono. Let’s get going now, dear.

**They grab me by the arm forcefully and begin to walk away. I practically have to run to not fall behind, but eventually I can walk at a normal pace again. Jeez, they really wanted to get out of there.**

**These walls make me so uncomfortable. I wish that this place had more color in it. All of this white is making my brain hurt. This hallway has a few paintings on the wall, I can give it that, but it’s really bland in every other sense.**

Nao: That was certainly an experience.

Aapo: I… How so?

Nao: Everyone is oddly calm for being possibly kidnapped, are they not?

Aapo: I… You’re right, but you also don’t seem particularly worried either?

Nao: Well, that’s a story for another day. Everybody is just sitting around and talking instead of trying to find a way out.

Aapo: Well, it’s probably better to talk and calm down before looking again! Or else it’d be hard to pay attention to everything. It’d be very stressful, I think. 

Nao: I suppose so. I think that we’ve calmed down enough though, darling. Let’s focus on finding a way out after we finish exploring, alright?

Aapo: Uh… alrighty! That’s probably a good idea…

Nao: I know it is. I’m always right. Walk a little faster, dear.

**Oh. Okay. I walk a little faster, perhaps a little too fast. Nao just said they were always right. That’s very… whatever. As we continue walking, Nao speeds up, so I have to speed up too. My poor little legs can't handle this. What’s their hurry? We’re just exploring! We should be taking our time.**

Nao: I think this is it, darling!

**I bump into them before I can stop walking, face-first into their back. I immediately recoiled, covering my face in my hands to hide my embarrassment.**

Aapo: Oh! Sorry about that! Uh… that does say workroom alright. Let’s go!

**I need to pay more attention next time! Nao opens the door, and we head inside!**

**Sitting at a table, there are three girls talking. I can’t exactly pick up what they are talking about, but Nao and I walk closer.**

??? 1: …and that’s why children scare me.

??? 2: Ah! Being a toy maker sounds so hard! At least with voice acting, you don’t really have to interact with the younger fans of the shows! At least not normally in person, I’m very active online. [Laughs] Is there anything bad about being a chemist, Tomita-san?

Tomita(?): …Not particularly? Unless you mess up and create something super deadly, but if you’re good at it, that doesn’t happen too often.

**What in the hell were they talking about? As we got close, Nao-San announced our presence.**

Nao: Hello there, dears! We certainly weren’t expecting people in here.

**One of the girls jumped slightly as she turned around to face us. Oh, did we scare her? I feel bad now…**

Tomita(?): Oh? We weren’t informed about anybody new, uh… take a seat, you two. We’re just talking about our talents, feel free to join us.

**I take a seat next to this really happy looking girl. I hope she isn’t as hyper as Ko… but she seems friendly, so maybe I’ll be more comfortable around her!**

??? 2: Heya! What about you two, what do ya guys do?

  
  
Nao: How about you tell us what you do first, dear. I'm tired of introducing myself for a moment.

Aapo: Well… I’m the Ultimate Poet! I write poetry in my room all day! I have a few books full of my poems published too! I don’t really leave my room much, though, I mostly just… write and go to school. It's fun and all, but I don't really know if I'm deserving of it though.

??? 2: Aww!! I’d love to read some of your poems, little dude!

  
  
Aapo: Oh! That’s really nice of you! I’m not a dude though!

??? 1: Oh, like me?

Aapo: ??? Huh?

Tomita(?): They're a demigirl. They use she/they pronouns.

Aapo: Oh! Thank you. I only go by they/them, by the way.

??? 2: Alright! I’ll keep that in mind, little… person! Little poet? Little enby?

  
  
**Okay, I definitely like her! I honestly wasn't expecting people to be so accepting here. I feel safe around her.**

Aapo: [Laughs] I like little enby! My name is Aapo Heikkinen, if you ever want to make any more nicknames for me!

??? 2: Nice to meet ya, Hei-kun! I’m Freya Vanderbilt. You've probably heard my voice before, because I was most likely in some of the shows you watch!

  


Aapo: Nice to meet you, Vanderbilt-san!

Vanderbilt: Call me Vander-San! it’s easier, alright?

Aapo: [Nods] Okay! Uh… What about you two?

??? 1: Name’s Moe Zenigata. Ultimate Toy Maker. I make toys for kids. Don't like it, though.

  


Nao: Toys? Like… bouncy balls and teddy bears?

Zenigata: I mean?? I can make those if I want. Usually. I’m commissioned to make custom toys. My family runs a little shop for toys, and usually kids beg me to make them a toy. They're incredibly entitled. I… don’t really like kids.

Nao: Kids are quite annoying, I’ll agree, but sometimes you just have to suck it up and smile! People love someone who’s nice in every situation!

Tomita(?): Imagine being nice in every single social situation, couldn’t be me.

Aapo: Huh?

Vander: Could be me.

Aapo: Huh???

Vander: [Putting a hand on my shoulder] Don't worry! I'll explain it to you! It's basically a joke. It's mostly seen on the internet, but I kinda just... talk like this to people too.

Aapo: Oh! Okay. I don’t use the internet too much, so… Yeah. Thank you, Vander-san.

**I wanna be funny! I don't think I'm really charismatic or funny, I think this could be a good time to practice!**

Aapo: Imagine using the internet. Couldn’t be me!! …Did I do the joke right, Vander-san?

Vander: Yep yep! [Laughs] You’re doing great, little enby.

Aapo: Thank you!! I'm trying my hardest here. Since we're doing little introduction thing, can I ask you a question?

Vander: Go ahead, my little enby pal!

Aapo: Uh… where are you from?

Vander: Ah! I’m Dutch! Not fully, but I'm mostly Dutch. I'm surprised my Japanese is even good enough to hold conversations.

Vander: What about you?

Aapo: Oh! I’m from Finland! It’s super cold there, and-

Tomita(?): Ahem.

**We all turn to look at the girl.**

Tomita(?): I haven’t introduced myself yet…

Aapo: Oh!! I’m sorry, go ahead!

Tomita(?): Thank you.

Tomita(?): Ren Tomita. Chemist.

  


**She doesn’t speak a lot of words, huh?**

Nao: Nice to meet you, deary!

Tomita: Don’t call me that again.

Nao: [Looking mildly offended] My my, what a rude way of telling me to do something!

Tomita: “I’m a professional, Nao-san. I don't need people like you looking down on me.

  
  
Nao: Oh, uh… Sorry about that then! That’s not what I meant by the nickname. It’s a nickname for everyone, not just you, I don't mean to seem like I'm looking down on anyone. Sorry again, Tomita-dono.

Tomita: It’s quite alright. Now, we never learned what your talent is. Care to tell us? You're the last person that needs to introduce themself.

Nao: I’m Shujin Nao, Ultimate Ringmaster. I lead the circus.

Tomita: [Smiles slightly] Is that why you’re so over the top?

Nao: [Laughs] That is exactly the reason why! Quite perceptive this one is.

Vander: Yep! Tomita-san is very, very smart! She even put together why we’re here! 

**Nao and I jump a bit at that.**

Aapo: She has? It would have been nice to know that beforehand... do you think you could tell us? We just woke up and everything...

Tomita: We all seem to have been accepted into a mysterious school that none of us can remember. So, I assume we were going to all be in the same class.

Tomita: I believe that this acceptance and this school was a scam. We were all accepted to a school, but there's not a single classroom in sight here. It was to lure us here and kidnap us. For what reason, I don’t know.

Aapo: …So we were tricked.

Tomita: Yeah… I mean, it isn’t too bad. We can probably find a way out.

Nao: Probably? That still means that there’s a chance we won’t…

Tomita: Yeah. Which is why I said probably.

Nao: Oh, okay!

Zenigata: So yeah! We were getting to know each other a little bit, as we're the group's unofficial escapists!

Vander: Yeah! You have to trust your teammates somewhat to be able to work well with them!

Aapo: Oh! Nao-san and I were planning on doing the same once we finished!

Vander: Same what?

Aapo: We were gonna start looking for a way to escape after we finished exploring!

Vander: You were?

Nao: Yes, dear. We have a few more rooms to explore, though.

Zenigata: Would you like to join us? It’s always good to have as many people on a team as possible, I think.

**??? We just met you. Uh… I mean, why not! I guess.**

Aapo: Sure! Can we finish exploring, though? We still have the kitchen and the laundry room to explore… I don’t think that we’re going to explore the bathrooms.

Nao: Yeah… Probably not. Uh… Where should we go next?

Vander: Uh… The kitchen, maybe?

Aapo: We were told that nobody is really allowed in the kitchen at the moment…

Zenigata: Oh? Why not?

Nao: We were told that someone was having a breakdown in the kitchen, and that only two people were allowed in. Fujiwara-dono went to check it out before we came here.

Zenigata: Oh. We weren’t there for that! Uh… for now, you could probably check out the laundry room! It’s, uh… where is it again?

Aapo: ??? I didn’t see a laundry room close by…

Tomita: It’s across the hall from here. Not to be rude or anything, but how on Earth did you not see it on your way here?

Aapo: I kind of ran into Nao-san when they came to the door, so I was too focused on apologizing and not if there were any other rooms.

Tomita: Fair. Well, I suggest you get going. I think Junpei-shi and Sora-shi are still in there, unless they went somewhere else.

Aapo: Ah, alright! Thank you for the directions! Uh… Goodbye now!

Vander: It was nice talking to you two!

Nao: The same goes for all of you!

Aapo: Yeah! What they said! You all are very nice and accepting and I really enjoyed talking to you!!! Bye!!

Zenigata: Bye-bye!

Vander: See ya!

Tomita: …Have fun you two.

_After saying our goodbyes, Nao and I left the room._

**We don’t have too much time to talk between the two rooms, so… I don’t attempt to start a conversation.**

**We enter the laundry room, and it’s… surprisingly big. I didn’t expect it to have more than one washer and dryer, but I suppose it would be needed for eighteen people, supposedly students. The walls are still white, but there are a few more paintings on the walls. There are also some baskets in the corner, probably for laundry. There are also a few shelves with some detergent, bleach, fabric softener, and some hangers.**

**There doesn’t seem to be anyone in here? I thought that there were supposed to be two people here? Oh well.**

Nao: They must have planned to keep us here long enough for us to need to do laundry.

**Normally, I do my laundry every week on Saturday, so that I have clothes for the next week. Using that as an estimate for how long they are planning to keep us here… it’s definitely more than a week, I’m sure of it. My stomach sinks a little bit at the realization, but I try to push it to the back of my mind. We need to focus.**

Aapo: What was even the point of kidnapping us if they have to pay for things like this? It doesn’t make any sense…

Nao: It really doesn’t but… at least we can be quite the clean folk if we can’t escape!

**Jeez, I don’t like that. I really don’t like that wording.**

_  
__  
_Aapo: Hey. be optimistic, Nao-san! We’ll escape from here! We’re on the escape team, right? We’ll find a way.

Nao: [Smiles] Ah, I suppose you’re right! We’ll be getting out of here soon. There are eighteen of us, and probably only a few people behind this!

Aapo: Yeah! We could easily overpower them if we needed to! Some of us are a little small… like me… but yeah!

Nao: Yeah. Seriously, you are quite small. How tall are you?

Aapo: Uh… I think I’m 5’1?

  
  
Nao: [Laughs] You are absolutely tiny! Can you even reach the shelf up there, deary?

Aapo: Yes I can! [Reaches up to grab detergent] …No, I can’t.

Nao: See, dear? I knew it! Miniscule. 

**Oh. it’s on. I begin to climb onto the washer. Nao puts their hands out, reaching towards me.**

Nao: Woah! Get down from there, dear!

Aapo: I don’t think I will! [Now fully on the washer] I’m going to show that I can reach the shelf!

**I reach up and grab a bottle of detergent, and turn to show Nao triumphantly.**

_  
__  
_Aapo: See?

Nao:: You still needed to climb onto the washer to reach it...

Aapo: …You’re right.

**Nao bursts into laughter as I put the detergent back onto the shelf. While I’m doing that, I hear the door open.**

??? 1: Oh! Did we walk in on something?

??? 2: [Giggling] I think we did.

??? 3: AWWWW, there's a kid on the washing machine!! You're so adorable, but you need to get down from there! You might not know this, but you could get really hurt if you fall! 

Aapo: [Turns around] Hey! I’m not a child! [Climbs down off the washer]

Nao: I mean... They aren’t wrong, dear.

??? 3: SEE? This guy gets it!! Who would even kidnap a child? That's so cruel! Whenever I find them... I'll fight them! With my kitty claws!

Nao: Neither of us are guys. Enbies.

??? 1: Mood.

Aapo: What does ‘mood’ mean?

??? 1: Huh? Do you not know what that means?

Aapo: Well, I do... but not in this context, I guess.

**I wish that Vander had come here with us, she’d probably be able to tell me…**

??? 2: Hey there, sugar. These fellas bein’ mean to ya?

Aapo: Yes!! I’m not a child!!

??? 1: Weren’t you just laughing, Sora-san?

Sora(?): I suppose I was… but I’m not now, am I?

**I cross my arms and fake pout.**

Nao: Aw, don’t be like that, Heikkinen-dono! We’re just joking around, darling.

??? 3: WAIT... Wait wait wait... that's a new person!! So is that one!!

??? 1: You just now noticed that?

??? 3: Mmmmaybe?

Sora(?): You two really are idiots! You’re definitely fun idiots, though.

??? 1: We know.

Aapo: Uh… who are you all? We also haven’t met you all yet…

Sora(?): Oh, I almost forgot about that! I’m Sora, I’m an Opera Singer. Don’t ask my last name, I don’t really remember it…

  


Sora: Just call me Sora-san or somethin’. I don’t mind too much.

Aapo: You don’t remember your last name?

??? 1: It sounds kind of fake, but neither do I! I can’t remember much to begin with, really, but…

Aapo: Does she not know either?

??? 3: I KNOW MY LAST NAME!! It's Miyu! ...HAI!! My name's Chiyu Miyu!! I'm a dietician!! I'll help you make sure you're healthy and happy! I'm also a kitty cat! 

  


**That isn’t really what I thought the Ultimate Dietician would look like, but she still looks kind of cool with that hair and the outfit!**

??? 1: ...and I’m Junpei. I don’t know my talent or my last name, haha. Sorry.

  


Aapo: You don’t remember your talent? Almost everyone has one!

Sora: We were talking with Tomita-shi, and it might have been something the kidnappers did? When Junpei-san woke up today, he had some bandages around his head, so Tomita-shi said that he probably had dealt with some blunt force trauma.

Sora: Surprised they're still alive, in all honesty. Glad they are, though!

Junpei: Aw, thank you, Sora-san! Happy to be here!

Sora: What about you two?

Nao: Name’s Shujin Nao, I lead the biggest circus in japan, whatever! Kid next to me is Aapo Heikkinen, they write poetry... I’m getting really tired of these introductions, darlings.

Aapo: I'm literally seventeen... I'm not a kid!

Miyu: I'm 21, so you're legally a kid to me!! 

Miyu: Anyways... IT'S SO NICE TO MEET YOU BOTH!! What're you doing in the laundry room?

Aapo: We were just exploring!

Junpei: Then why were you on the washing machine when we came in?

Nao: They were trying to prove they could reach the shelf.

Aapo: So what? …Maybe I was.

Sora; Hey, don’t be too worried about bein’ too short, sugar! Welcome to the club. [Laughs]

Aapo: Happy to be here! I think.

Miyu: Does that mean there are more people to meet?! 

Sora: Suppose so!

Aapo: There is! Sae-sama and TEN-san are exploring on their own.

Junpei: Can’t wait to meet them, too. Where are they now?

Nao: They went to check out the other dorms, but are probably somewhere else by now. Sorry, Junpei-Dono, we don’t really have much of a clue.”

Junpei: Oh! We’ll find them soon then! What do you guys think of everyone else so far?

Aapo: Vander-san is really nice to me! She taught me about an internet joke earlier today.

Junpei: “till can’t believe you don’t know what mood means.

Aapo: “Is that a joke thing?”

Junpei: Yeah. It just means you relate to something.

Aapo: Oh!! Okay!

Sora: We’re gonna have to teach ya about all'o'that stuff sometime!

Aapo: Maybe! For now, we only have one more room to explore, and I kind of want to get that done now…

Miyu: Oh, alright. We’ll be seeing you two later?

**Just as Nao and I begin to say our goodbyes, Fujiwara bursts through the door.**

Fujiwara: Oh. There you two are.

Miyu: Oh, Mr. kitsune mask is here!

**Oh yeah! Kitsunes are animals, like cats! No wonder she looks so happy.**

Fujiwara: Yes, I’m here. Is it okay if I steal these two from you for a few? I just got done in the kitchen and want them to meet a few people.

Sora: Of course, sugar! We’ll be seeing you two later! [Waves]

Aapo: Oh! Okay! Goodbye now, everyone!

Nao: Nice meeting you three!

Junpei: Same goes for you guys!

Miyu: It was!!!. Goodbye, kitsune mask!

Fujiwara: Uh… Goodbye.

**With that, Fujiwara ushers us into the hallway.**

Fujiwara: Thank whatever god is out there, that girl scares me.

Aapo: Who?

Fujiwara: Miyu-san.

Fujiwara: She keeps talking about animals and how cute my mask is... and she's a little bit taller than me. She's scary.

Nao: She'll probably calm down soon, she's probably just excited about meeting new people, deary!

Fujiwara: [Sighs] I sure hope so.

**There’s an awkward silence between all of us now. Yikes. Time to attempt to make this less awkward!**

Aapo: Uh… Why did you decide to come get us now?

Fujiwara: Well, Yuharo-san calmed down, so… I decided that it would be good to get this out of the way now. Hironaka-Shi is also there, as well as Ono-san.

Aapo: Oh! So he’s doing good now?

Fujiwara: Not great, but better.

Aapo: Well, I guess that’s better than being bad!

Fujiwara: I suppose so. We’re almost there, so please be quiet as we enter the room. Especially you, Nao-san.

Nao: Will do, darling!

**Directly across from the living room area, there was a small hallway. We turn there and begin to head down into the room.**

**It’s a kitchen, surprise surprise! There's a rather large round table in the middle of the room, where a girl and this small, masked boy were sitting. In front of them were three cups of tea. There was a taller boy sitting on the opposite side of the masked boy, staring at us intensely.**

**I thought the dining room was supposed to be separate from the kitchen? Perhaps Fujiwara forgot that there was a large table in the kitchen when he talked to us.**

Fujiwara: Hello there, Yuharo-san.

Masked Boy: [Raising a hand with a duck puppet on it] Hello…

Fujiwara: You know those new people I told you about? I brought them here for you to meet. Don’t be shy, alright?

??? 1: “It is not _shyness_ , Fujiwara-shi. This boy has severe anxiety. There is a difference.

Fujiwara: Sorry. Here. Don’t be anxious, they won’t hurt you. See, I fixed it.

??? 1: …Good enough.

Fujiwara: Heikkinen-San, please introduce yourself.

**Oh? Me? Alright. I step a little closer and wave, smiling.**

Aapo: Hi there! I’m Aapo Heikkinen, the Ultimate Poet. It’s very nice to meet you.

Masked Boy: ... Amai Yuharo. This is my friend, Gyo. I can make him talk... without moving my mouth...

**The duck puppet is his friend? It looks really realistic. I thought you were supposed to see a ventriloquist’s mouth though? Perhaps he takes the mask off for performances.**

Aapo: Gyo looks really nice!

Yuharo: He is… He’s a good friend too…

Aapo: I’m sure he is. Uh… Who are those people beside you?

Yuharo: Hironaka-shi’s the kind man… Ono-san is the one who made me some tea… They are really nice…

Aapo: That's quite kind of them. You must be very happy that they are so nice to you, huh?

Yuharo: Yes… they helped me feel better after that mean girl said something mean.

Ono(?): Well, she didn’t mean to, alright?

Hironaka(?): Quiet.

Yuharo: [Pointing to Nao] Who’s the clown?

Nao: My name is Shujin Nao! Ringmaster of the Nao circus. Truly a pleasure to be in your presence.

Yuharo: Eek! Scary… and loud...

**Yuharo covers his ears.**

Fujiwara: Alright, you two, introduce yourselves so that Nao-san can leave.

Nao: Why only me?

Fujiwara: Well, you are clearly scaring him.

Nao: I’m not that scary, am I?

Hironaka(?): _Quiet._

**Nao goes silent at that. Jeez, he’s terrifying.**

Hironaka(?): I am Daisuke Hironaka. I'm probably going to end up taking care of everyone here. Remember to take care of your mental health, and to visit your local psychotherapist. Aka, me.

Aapo: Nice to meet you, Hironaka-shi.

Hironaka: Quiet down. Ono-san, please introduce yourself quickly.

Ono(?): Ume Ono, the Ultimate Tea Maker, at your service. [Bows]

Hironaka: We’re done now. Can you please remove the clown?

  
  
**Nao looks mildly offended.**

Nao: Ringmaster, not clown.

Hironaka: [Sighs] Does that really matter right now? Please leave so that Yuharo-San can feel safer.

**Fujiwara then begins to drag Nao by the arm. There’s not much protest from Nao, but it's still very clear that they are annoyed.**

Yuharo: Thank you, kind mister Hironaka… You’re very nice to me… Gyo and I thank you.

Hironaka: [Smiles] Of course, kid. It’s all in the job.

Yuharo: Haha… part of the job! You are such a kind person… to do this as a job, mister Hironaka.

Hironaka: Again, thank you, kid. Glad that I’m able to help you so much.

Yuharo: Haha, yeah… help me a lot… Mister Hironaka, what is Heikkinen-san doing here still?

Hironaka: Do you not want them to be here?

Yuharo: Gyo and I are very… very tired of people… Can I tell them goodbye and can you make them leave?

Aapo: I can leave, it doesn’t bother me.

Hironaka: Thank you, Heikkinen-san. Yuharo, say goodbye to them now, alright?

Yuharo: [Giggles] Alright! Gyo and I say goodbye to you, Heikkinen-san!

Aapo: [Smiles] Goodbye now, Yuharo-san.

**Before I can even turn to leave, there’s a crackling sound. It sounds like one that you would hear before a morning announcement in school.**

Yuharo: [Grabs onto Hironaka, shrieking] What was that, mister Hironaka?!

Hironaka: Kid, I don’t know. Deep breaths, kid. Try to stay calm.

Yuharo: [Whimpers] Alright.

**There’s a bit more noise before there's a voice that can be heard.**

**???:** Tehe, tehe. Testing, testing, one-two-three! Hello hello, I hope this is working, tehehe! Hello there, students of Hokkyoku Academy! This is your lovely, wonderful hostess speaking! I request you all in the work room! It shouldn’t be too far of a walk for any of you. If you decide not to show up, well… tehehe! You’ll find out the hard way. Now… hurry, hurry! I have some lovely news to share with you all!~ Teehee…”

**With that, the voice cut off.**

**Hokkyoku Academy? Was that the school we all got accepted to? Why are we being called students? It’s not like we’re at an actual school, so yeah. Why does our captor sound like a little girl? I’m almost positive that a little girl wouldn’t be able to pull this all off…**

Hironaka: I suppose we should get going then. That has to be our captors, and we might get hurt if we don’t obey.

Yuharo: [Stands up quickly] I don’t want to be hurt! Come on, mister Hironaka… Come on, Ono-san… Come on, Heikkinen-san!

**Yuharo uses his free hand to grab Hironaka, heading towards the exit of the kitchen.**

Hironaka: Alright, kid, take it easy.

Ono: I wonder what this is all about…

Hironaka: Come on, you two. We don’t have time to wonder, only to head out.

**With that, the four of us walked out of the kitchen, heading to the workroom. I’m still very confused. Why were our captors calling us somewhere, instead of just showing up? Why is there some intercom-like announcement system? Why did they sound like a little girl, and what did they mean by lovely news? What kind of news was there to give in a hostage situation? What does the voice mean by hostess? Most importantly…**

**What’s going on?**


	3. Prologue [0-2]: If Dreams Can Come True, What Does That Say About Nightmares?

**The walk to the workroom was quiet, aside from the little questions that came from Yuharo. He seemed completely on edge, the poor thing.**

Yuharo: Are you… are you sure we are going to be okay… Mister Hironaka?

Hironaka: Well, I can’t guarantee it, but we’re all going to do our best to stay safe, alright? If anything happens, I’ll protect you as best as I can.

Yuharo: …Okay, Mister Hironaka… sorry for asking so much, I’m just… scared…

Hironaka: It’s okay, kid. Really.

Ono: Yeah, it’s alright to be scared! Especially because of the situation.

Aapo: Yeah! Everybody is scared right now, even us. 

Ono: You know what? After this, how about I make you some more tea? You’ll feel better soon after.

Hironaka: Tea is not always the answer to high levels of stress and anxiety, Ono-shi.

Yuharo: No, no…That sounds nice…

**I want to help out if I can.**

Aapo: Maybe I could recite some poetry to you? I have many poems memorized, and I’ve been told that I’m good at reading, so…

Yuharo:: You can? I think… I’d like that afterwards, too…

Ono: Oh! If you want to, I can also get Ko-san to play you something, or even Do-san, but-

**That’s probably a bad thing to mention.**

Yuharo: [Looking freaked out] No! No no, I don’t want either! They both scare me!

Hironaka: Hey, you’re alright. Take a deep breath, kid. Neither of them are going to come near you.

Yuharo: [Sniffles] Okay… Thank you…

Hironaka: You seem kind of tired. Do you want to continue talking?

Yuharo: [Shaking head] No… I don’t… Gyo, do you? [Brings hand up to face, making the duck shake it’s head] Gyo doesn’t either…

Hironaka: Alright. [Turning to Ono and I] I request that you don’t talk until we get there, please.

**I nod my head, although I don’t really want to walk in silence. It’s awkward for me, but… Yuharo is very unstable, so it’s probably for the best.**

**The rest of the walk is quiet, and before we know it, we’re at the work room. Hironaka opens the door and heads in, Yuharo practically latching onto him. Ono and I enter afterwards, and I take a look around the room as I take in the now somewhat familiar faces.**

**At the table from before, Zengita and Vander are sitting down with Nao, Tomita, Ko. and TEN. Off in one of the corners is Sae, and he’s staring down Nao while talking to Fujiwara and Do. Yuharo is immediately repelled by the middle table, so he drags Hironaka with him to the less sociable corner. I decide to pull over one of the work chairs to the table, and it seems Ono has the same idea.**

TEN: [Gasps, before waving to me] HI AGAIN, HEIKKINEN-SAN! HOW WAS EXPLORING?

Aapo: Oh! It was fun! They made fun of me for being short a lot, though.

Nao: Dear, that was once! [Laughs] You are kind of short though.

Aapo: [Gasps] No! I’m not!!

Vander: [Laughs] Aw, you two hush! Welcome back, little enby! Don’t worry about being short, you’re fine just the way you are!

Aapo: Aw! How sweet of you, Vander-san!

Tomita: Yes. Very kind.

Vander: Haha, yep! It’s what I do!

Tomita: I can see that…

Vander: You can probably see a lot of things! You have like… two eyes. For seeing with!

Tomita: …Everyone here does. I don’t know about Fujiwara-shi or Yuharo-shi, but I’m almost positive they both have a regular amount of eyes.

Nao: If they don’t?

Tomita: Well, I’ll let you say ‘I told you so,’ alright?

Nao: [Laughs] Alright! I’ll keep that in mind!

**Zenigata coughs, clearing her throat. We all turn to look at her.**

Zenigata: Hey, sorry to interrupt, but… this doesn’t look like everyone.

Aapo: I don’t think everyone is here yet?

Tomita: We’re missing a few people, yes. I expect them to be here soon, though. The announcement wasn’t exactly clear on what would happen if we didn’t come, but we can assume that it isn’t good. They’ll be here soon.

Tomita: While on the topic, though, I think we have something to discuss.

Zenigata: …Which is?

Tomita: I think you know what it is. Don’t play dumb, Zenigata-shi.

**The table goes quiet. The announcement, right… Tomita’s facial expression softens slightly, but she still looks serious.**

Tomita: Sorry to have taken this… leader-like position. I suppose it is only natural for me. Can one of you louder people call the others over? I’d appreciate that very much.

Vander: [Immediately and loudly] Hey! Do-san, boys, come on over here real quick! We’re about to discuss something super important!

Sae: [Frustrated] Fuck off! I’m not getting near any of you.

**Jeez, even now, Sae is acting like this…**

Tomita: …Rude.

Sae: Yeah. Get used to it.

Nao: [Mockingly] Aw, Sae-dono! Throwing another fit over something small, I see? You sure seem to do that a lot!

Sae: [Also mockingly] Aw, Nao-san! Being intentionally frustrating to people you don’t like, I see? You sure seem to do that a lot.

Nao: ...

TEN: DON'T YOU TWO DARE START AGAIN! 

Sae: Well, that settles it. I’m definitely not going over there now, I’ll listen from here.

TEN: PLEASE? THIS IS SUPER DUPER IMPORTANT.

Sae: Can I not fucking listen from over here?

TEN: VANDER-SAN HAD TO YELL FOR YOU TO HEAR ANYTHING WE WERE SAYING. YOU NEED TO COME OVER HERE YOU'RE NEARLY DEAF.

Sae: Okay? I still don’t want to fucking come over there. I’ll sit this one out, thank you.

**TEN looks down slightly. Xe looks kind of dejected, and Tomita looks annoyed.**

Tomita: Sae-shi, come over here _now._ This is a serious discussion that we are about to have.

Yuharo: ...

Hironaka: Hey, kid. Go to the table while we try to deal with Sae-sama.

Yuharo: I… Okay. I’ll go to the table… in a second.

**Yuharo walks up to Sae, looking up at him as he brings Gyo up to the taller boy’s face.**

Yuharo: [Higher pitched voice] Hey mister! My friend Amai here wants to tell you that he thinks you need to go to the table, so!-

**Sae’s eyes widen before he frantically pushes Yuharo’s hand away from his face, stepping back. He stumbles back slightly and falls back, landing on the floor.**

Sae: The fuck?! Don’t put shit in people’s faces, you dumbass! Why the… why the _fuck_ would you even think that’s okay to do?! 

Sae: Were you not taught basic manners? Personal space? A-Are you fucking KIDDING me? First I get kidnapped, and then my entire personal space get' i-invaded? I can't fucking DO this today! I-I really can't... I can't... 

**Sae looks distressed. He brings his hands up to his hair and grip onto it tightly, closing his eyes.**

Yuharo: Oh… I-I’m sorry… I didn’t-

Hironaka: [Sternly] Yuharo, step back for a moment.

Yuharo: [Nods, and then steps back]

Hironaka: [Walks towards Sae] Ryou Saemonsaburou, correct?

Sae: [Nods] That’s my name, yes, why the fuck… why do you ask? Get away from me, I can listen from hee.

**Hironaka ignores that last thing as he continues to talk.**

Hironaka: Okay. You are Ryou Saemonsaburou. Take a look around you.

Sae: [Looks around, his hands moving away from his hair slightly] I… I did. What the fuck am I supposed to take from that?

Hironaka: So you can tell me where you are right now?

Sae: Of course I can! I'm not stupid. I’m in the workroom, what the fuck am I supposed to gain from that? Everybody's here!

Hironaka: Alright. That’s good. Can I come any closer?

Sae: [Bringing a hand over his face] No. Fuck off.

Hironaka: Alright, no need to be harsh now. Take a deep breath.

**Sae takes in a deep breath, not bothering to fight back verbally. After another minute or two, he calms down a bit, at least enough to stand up.**

Hironaka: Alright, please go sit down. You’re going to be okay. Sit down and take some more deep breaths. You can calm down there if you just relax.

Sae: …Fine. Uh… [Moves to the table]

**He looks embarrassed.**

Hironaka: Thank you. Yuharo-san, don’t do that again. Ask people if you can show them Gyo before you do.

Yuharo: Okay… Sorry, Sae-sama…

Sae: Fuck off.

**MAN.**

Yuharo: Alright…

**As those five are getting settled, my wanders. Why did Sae freak out like that? Oh well, it might be like how Yuharo freaked out over a word, or maybe it was the fact that Yuharo was so close? I feel bad for him, honestly. I don't think he deserved to have his personal space invaded. Still, Yuharo was just trying to help...**

**I’m brought out of my thoughts as I hear the door open. I turn to look, and in comes Nagai, Junpei, Sora, Miyu, and Tetsuya.**

Tetsuya: Are we late?

Sora: Sugar, we’re fashionably late.

Miyu: Yup yup! Not late at all.

Sae: No, you’re late.

Fujiwara: Please sit down, you five. We’re about to discuss something that Tomita-shi finds important.

Junpei: Alright, come on. I’ll get all of you a chair.

Nagai: Alright!

Tomita: Please, do hurry.

**Quickly, Junpei gathered up a few more chairs and set them up for the rest of the newcomers, before sitting down on his own. The others sat down as well, before Tomita stood up and looked over everyone.**

Tomita: Alright. Now that everyone is here, we have a few things to discuss. Firstly, the announcement. Is there anyone new, or anyone that looks like our captor in the room right now?

**Everybody looked around the room, before looking back up at Tomita. I shook my head as I looked, seeing nobody out of place.**

Tomita: So then, that raises a question. Why did our captors call us here _?_ I was assuming that they would be here waiting for us to come, but there’s not a single suspicious person here.

Hironaka: Well, maybe we’re just early or something.

Tomita: I mean, that could be possible, but…

Tomita: They also mentioned something about news. If they had something to say, why didn’t they just say what they wanted to say over the intercom?

TEN: GOOD POINT! MAYBE THEY WERE LIKE...

Ko: OH MY GOD!! What if they were calling us here to kill us?! They aren’t here yet because they had to get their weapons!

Yuharo: Eek! [Clutches onto Hironaka]

Hironaka: Ko-shi, you’re scaring Yuharo-san…

Do: Yuki, please calm down… I don’t think that we’re going to get killed.

Ko: Aw, Yu-Yu! Do you think I’m being unreasonable?

Do: Yeah. I think so. Don't try to scare people like that.

Ko: [Sighs] Aw, you’re so boring…

Tomita: [Coughs, trying to get everyone’s attention] Anyways. What were you going to say, TEN-shi?

TEN: MAYBE THEY WERE WANTING TO GIVE US SOMETHING PHYSICAL! PROBABLY SOMETHING THAT CAN'T BE GIVEN OR SAID OVER THE INTERCOM.

Sae: That’s kind of fucking obvious, but at least you’re pointing it out, I guess.

TEN: [Smiles] THANK YOU, SAE-SAMA!

Sae: Fuck off.

TEN: OH.

Aapo: …Does anyone have any idea when they’ll get here then??

Miyu: Nope! No idea!

_Nobody else said anything. Great._

Tomita: Well… I guess all we can do now is wait.

Vander: What should we do while we wait?

Ko: Ooh, I know! Let’s play a game!

Fujiwara: A game?

Ko: Yeah, that sounds a little impossible, now that I’m thinking about it! Fujiwara-chan, what should we do??

Fujiwara: Firstly, it’s Fujiwara-s _an_ , and… Why are you asking me? I honestly have no idea on what to do.

Ko: [Huffs] Well, I just thought you’d know!

???: Teehee, teehee!~ You don’t have to think of anything to do, because I’m hereee!~

**? Where was the voice coming from?**

Hironaka: Come closer, Yuharo-san.

**Yuharo huddles closer to Hironaka, as Tomita, Fujiwara, TEN, and Miyu get up.**

Fujiwara: Whoever you are, I suggest you show yourself.

Tomita: We will not hesitate to resort to something physical.

TEN: I COULD PROBABLY KILL YOU IF YOU EVEN TRIED ANYTHING. 

Miyu: Yeah!! Xe probably could!! I can frick you up with my claws too!

???: Teehee, teehee!~ You don’t even know me! Or where I am! How can you do anything physical to me, heehee!

**Not that I want to side with someone who is antagonizing us, but… yeah, they’re right. We can’t do anything.**

???: Look over here, teehee!~ Maybe then you’ll realize where and who I am~

**We turned to where the voice was now coming from, and…**

**Right in front of the door stood a little monochrome fox looking-creature.**

Ko: [Yells happily] Aww, you’re so cute!!

???: No I’m not! I’m SCARY, teehee!~

Yuharo: Ye…Yes, you are…

???: Glad that someone can see that, heehee!~

Tomita: How are you even talking? Foxes aren’t supposed to be that color, either.

Sora: [Crosses her arms] Yeah! Ya can’t be a real fox…

???: That’s funny, teehee!~ Do you need to feel my fur? It’s quite real, I can assure you!

Sora: I am… NOT touching ya.

???: Aww, that’s a shame, teehee!~ Well, you can believe whatever you want to believe!

**Sae then got up from where he was sitting and walked over to the fox thing, leaning down and touching its fur.**

Sae: Since you fucking wimps won’t do it, I will. [Grimaces] Yeah, that’s real fucking fur alright.

**Sae steps back and sits down again. How did it have real fur?**

???: My my, what bravery! Teehee, he confirmed it for you all! One hundred percent real fur!

???: You’re right, though! I’m not a real fox!

Tomita: The only logical conclusion I can come up to is that you’re fake, and that someone made realistic fur for you.

???: Ding ding ding! Teehee, you’re right! I’m only modeled after a fox to fit the theme, teehee!~

**Theme?**

Aapo: What do you mean by theme?

Fujiwara: What do you mean by ‘modeled after a fox?’ Did someone make you?

???: Hey, hey! Don’t get ahead of yourself, teehee!~ I’m the one in charge here!

Ko: Aw! You’re so funny!

Miyu: Three's eighteen of us, and only one of you!

Hironaka: That’s correct. Literally any of us could pick you up and just… put you somewhere. I don’t think you being in charge will last too long.

???: Oh, really?

???: I suggest not trying to pick me up, teehee! Or else…

**The creature opened its mouth to show tons of sharp teeth, like real foxes, but sharper and so many more of them. Nothing should have that many teeth, jeez.**

???: …and I haven’t even told you the best part yet!

???: _They’re coated in a very powerful poison, teehee!~_

**Poison?**

Nao: Poison?! Darling, that’s not good at all! That's rather dangerous...

???: Nope! It isn’t a good thing! Which is why none of you should attack or disobey me! [Jumps onto the table in the middle of the room] Wow, you guys are really surrounding me, heehee!

Tomita: Quiet. I believe that you have some explaining to do.

???: I don’t have to do anything, but… I’m feeling nice today! So I think I’ll tell you who I am, teehee!~

???: I’m your hostess, Bee!

**Hostess? Do they mean captor?**

Sae: What the _fuck_ do you mean by hostess? There isn’t anything being hosted here! No parties or shows or anything! We’ve been fucking kidnapped! Whoever is controlling you is gonna go to jail for this.

Bee: Well well! The brave one is _also_ a feisty one, I see! Heehee!

Bee: Well, that’s what the lovely news is! Do you want me to tell you now, teehee?~

**Sae stands up, and I can just tell that he’s angry. He slams one of his hands down onto the table.**

Sae: Tell us already!

Aapo: Hey, calm down a little bit, Sae-sama...

Sae: Heikkinen-san, you can't expect me to calm down like this, right?

Bee: If you don’t quiet down, Saemonsaburou, you’re going to be the first to get punished!

**Bee opens her mouth again, a reminder of all of her poison coated teeth... Sae sits down after a moment as if he’s just… given up on it already.**

Bee: Alright, is there anyone else who wishes to interrupt?

**The entire room is silent, and Bee giggles as she swishes her tail.**

Bee: Great! Now, yes! You were kidnapped! You guys were also out for days on end while you were brought here, teehee!~ Now, there’s a very wonderful reason as to why you were brought here!

**Without thinking, I begin to speak.**

Aapo: A reason? The only reason I can think of for this is to kill us all off! Or something that I can’t even say… What reason were we brought here?

Bee: I mean… you got part of it right! Didn't think you would be smart enough to figure anything out at all! Good job.

**Wait, what?**

Yuharo: [Shakily] Wh…What part of that was correct?!

Bee: You were brought here to be killed, teehee!~ _...but not by me._

Tetsuya: By who then?

Sora: Yeah, I don’t see anybody else ‘round here! The only person that could plan to murder all’o’us is you!

Ono: We aren’t going to let anyone here die, so…

Ko: YEAH!! You aren’t gonna do anything!

**Everybody in the room starts verbally protesting, including me. Everything feels numb, and weird. Even the threat of being killed makes me feel uneasy. It makes my stomach sick and it hurts to speak. I eventually fade out of the rest of the protesting, and I slump back in my chair. I cover my ears the best I can, but it's really no use. Too loud, too loud…**

**Just thinking about it makes me feel like I'm going to die. I know I probably will, since I've just been kidnapped by some weird fox thing. This has to be a joke, right? There's no way to escape at the moment, and we're practically at the will of this creature...**

Bee: _QUIET!_

**The entire room goes quiet, I think from the shock. Byakko’s voice is loud, and she sounds like she’s a full-grown woman rather than a little girl.**

Bee: Thank you, teehee!~

**She’s back to normal.**

Bee: Now, what I was _going_ to say is that I’m not going to kill anyone! ... _but you guys are!_

**The next response is quick.**

Fujiwara: No, we aren’t.

Bee: Oh, you don’t even know anything, do you? Teehee!~ You’re going to either kill, or stay here forever!

**Forever?!**

Junpei: Forever?

Do: Well, someone is bound to come and find us eventually, people like Heikkinen-san and Sae-shi are well known outside of here, someone is bound to send out a search team or something.

**I feel kind of flattered that I’m being used as an example, but with the context? I feel weird. I can hear Sae mutter something under his breath, but I can’t make out what he’s saying.**

Bee: That’s a fair point! Nobody knows _where_ you are, though! Teehee!~ You don’t know where you are, do you?

Nagai: No, we don’t! Would you mind telling us?

**Silence.**

Nagai: Please?

Bee: [Giggles] Aw! You’re so polite! Of course, I’ll tell you, teehee!~

Bee: You’re in Antarctica! Wonder why it’s been so chilly? Well, there’s your reason, heehee!

**Well. That’s why, like Bee said. No wonder it’s so cold here.**

Vander: Why Antarctica? That’s a while away from Japan!

Bee: Well, _that_ reason why is a secret for now! You’ll figure it out eventually, though!~

Bee: Now here’s the lovely news, right? Because nobody can get to you… you are stuck here forever! Nobody knows you’re here, so there’s not much hope for you all, heehee!~

Bee: _…but there is a way out of here!_

Sae: Yeah. By walking out the door.

Bee: [Laughs] Oh, you're so silly!

Bee: You would freeze to death! Or you would get electrocuted by the fencing! Even then, you wouldn’t be able to go outside, you aren’t even on the first floor!

Bee: _We take precautions to make sure none of you can escape, Saemonsaborou._

_We?_

Sae: I… Okay…

**Sae looks down. He doesn’t look like he has it in him to fight anymore. I decide to ask something, to try and get everyone back on track.**

Aapo: You said there was a way out… correct?

Aapo: Tell us what it is, pl…please?

Bee: I was going to get to that before Saemonsaborou decided to interrupt, teehee!~ Blame him for not getting your answer sooner!~

Sae: ...

Bee: You are stuck here for the rest of your lives, but… _if you can kill someone and get away with it_ , you get to escape!

**The room goes silent afterward. It’s like… everyone is trying to comprehend what we were told.**

**What? There was no way we were just told to murder each other, right?**

Bee: [Giggling] Aw! Everyone’s so silent now, teehee!~ There’s a few more things that I need to explain to you all, though! We have a few rules here! You can read over them soon, but right now, I’ll tell them to you verbally!~

Sae: Wait-

Bee: Don’t interrupt me until I finish talking, Saemonsaburou!

**Sae goes completely quiet.**

Bee: Thank you!~ Now, onto the rules!

**Bee clears her throat, which I didn’t think she could do, and goes into this… speech that sounds quite rehearsed.**

Bee: Welcome, students of the Hokkyoku Academy! You will be participating in the… wait, I can’t tell you that!~ Just know that you’re participating in a killing game!

**A killing game? What on Earth does that even mean?**

Bee: You are stuck here forever, unless you get away with murder! After three people have discovered a body, you will be given a short period of time to investigate, finding anything that points to the victim’s killer! Then the class trial will be held!

**Class… trial?**

Bee: During the trial, you will debate with your classmates to figure out who the killer is! After the trial, you will be given the chance to vote on who you think the killer is! Teehee, doesn’t that just sound fun?~

Do: No. It doesn’t.

Bee: Well, it does to me, teehee!~ If the majority of votes are correct, then everyone will get to live, and the killer will be punished!

Fujiwara: Punished?

Bee: _Killed as well!_ An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, heehee! One person loses their life, and the killer loses theirs in return! Teehee!~

Bee: …but if you all guess wrong, you’ll get punished for not finding the true killer! Everyone else will die, and the killer will be allowed free!

Tetsuya: So we have to find out who the killer is...

Tetsuya: That should be easy. Leave any murder investigation to me.

Ono: Whoever said we were going to kill in the first place?

Nao: Yes, Bee-dono, even in this situation, nobody here looks like they would kill… except for maybe Sae-dono that is-

**Sae looks both angry and confused.**

Sae: Why me?! What the fuck gives you the impression I would kill someone?!

Nao: Anger can often lead to fits of rage, which can lead to lashing out and possibly injuring or even killing someone!

Sae: I… I would _never!_ Don’t make claims like that, what the fuck?! I might not fucking like you at all but I’m not going to say that you’re going to murder somebody because of that!  
  


Bee: [Laughs] My my! Already causing some drama to stir, aren’t I? Teehee!~

Bee: We still have a few rules to get through, though!~ Please be quiet while I talk!~

**The room is silent again.**

Bee: Rule number one! Sleeping outside of a dorm room is forbidden!

  
  
Bee: Rule number two! You can switch rooms whenever you like!

Bee: Rule number three! If you try to hurt me, you will be punished!

Bee: Finally, rule number four! One killer may only kill up to two people! Any more and they are automatically executed!

**Bee goes silent as she looks at us all, swishing her tail from side to side.**

Bee: Any questions?

**Yes, actually.**

Nagai: What if… There are two murderers?

Bee: Simple! The killer of the first victim is the one you need to find out!

**This feels unreal.**

Tomita: What if there is an even amount of votes on two or more people?

**Why would we need to know? Nobody is going to kill anyone…**

Bee: The trial shall be continued! You’ll be given an extra thirty minutes to dispute, and then you’ll vote again! If the votes remain the same, it will count as the blackened getting away with murder!

**Nobody is going to kill. Nobody will.**

Miyu: ..but what if someone kills themself! Or the killer kills themself after a murder?

**Stop asking questions, please.**

Bee: Then someone random out of the people left will get executed! They can offer to get killed, or it can be random, teehee!~

Yuharo: What will happen if… it’s an accident?

**Please.**

Byakko: If you accidentally murder someone, you’re still a murderer!

**I look away from Byakko, and I see something that is… unusual. Sae looks like he’s on the verge of tears. He hasn’t looked like in all of the time that I’ve known him, and even if he is an asshole…**

**I need to say something.**

Ko: OOH! Question! What if-

**Now.**

Aapo: Quiet!

**The entire room turns to me as I stand up.**

Aapo: I think we’ve asked enough. No more questions, please!

**Ko stops talking and looks over to me.**

**I feel bad. she looks… upset, but I needed to stop this.**

Bee: My my, I didn't expect quiet little Heikkinen to say something so bold...

Aapo: ...Can you finish up now?

Bee: Yes, I can! Teehee!~ There’s only one more thing!

Bee: In everyone’s room on their bed, I’ve left a little… device! You can message other people on it, you can look at all collected evidence for murder trials, you can make group chats, and you can even take pictures on it! Teehee, doesn’t that sound wonderful?~

Aapo: I guess so…

Bee: Anyways, that’s all I have for you today! Goodbye now, everyone! You are free to leave!

**Bee then jumps off the table, leaving the room through this doggy-door like thing on the work room’s door.**

**I didn’t realize that there was a doggy door, but I’m thankful for it. The room is still silent and tense, but… at least that fox isn’t here anymore.**

**  
What were we supposed to do with this information now? We were just told that we were going to kill each other! Nobody speaks up for a few minutes, and we all just sit there in uncomfortable silence. I need to say something, but I’m really bad at taking control of situations. I look over to Tomita, hoping she would say something. She seemed to get the point.**

Tomita: Well. Now that the fox is gone… perhaps we should head back to our dorms for a while.

Fujiwara: Didn’t that little creature say that there were those devices in our rooms? We should probably get them.

Tomita: Actually, that’s not a bad idea. She did say that there was a communication system on it, that’s most definitely useful.

**Sae is staring at Fujiwara intensely. He looks angry, and kind of scared, in all honesty.**

Sae: Well then.

Sae: I think it's pretty fucking obvious who our kidnapper is.

Nagai: Who do you think it is?

Sae: Fujiwara-yogisha.

**Fujiwara looks absolutely bewildered at that. What on Earth has gotten Sae worked up this time?**

Fujiwara: Huh? Sorry, I don’t understand what you m-

Sae: You should know damn well. That’s a fox, and you’re wearing a fox mask. Did you create that thing?

**…Is Sae actually accusing Fujiwara of being behind this?**

Fujiwara: N…No? Why would I do that? I don’t think our captors would be that obvious, and I'm not good with... not good with machines. Or robots, whatever they're called...

Sae: Or is that what you want us to think?

Fujiwara: I’m… huh? I’m just as confused as you are…

Sae: No the fuck you aren’t! I… stay the fuck away from me.

Sora: That seems like a baseless accusation, sugar.

Tomita: Yeah, even I'm completely confused. Just because there's a fox and he's wearing a fox mask doesn't mean he created that thing.

Miyu: You really shouldn't claim someone's a kidnapper, Sae-sama! That's not nice, we're all in this together-

Sae: No, we aren't. Not with Fujiwara-yogisha being around.

**Sae is the first to get up from the table.**

Sae: Whatever, I’m going to get my tablet now, I don’t want to have to be around the clown for too long. [Leaves]

TEN: I'LL COME WITH YOU!

Nao: Once again, Sae-dono! I’m not a- and he left! Deary me…

**Fujiwara is just looking down. Even with the mask on, he looks upset.**

Hironaka: Perhaps it was for the best that he left.

Yuharo: He’s so mean…

Hironaka: Yeah, he kind of is, I won’t lie, but him getting away from everybody gives him a chance to calm down. He’s probably just as shaken up over all of this as we are. Paranoia is common in stressful situations that you can't leave.

**Fujiwara’s voice is shaky as he talks.**

Fujiwara: Fair, I guess… I don’t see a reason to stay in here for much longer. I’m going to go get my device from our dorm, Hironaka-shi. [Gets up to leave]

Tomita: Wait. Before you go, I have something I want to say to everyone.

**Fujiwara stops in his tracks and looks back to Tomita.**

Fujiwara: I’m listening.

Tomita: I don’t believe that fox. Bee, or whatever her name is. I also don’t believe anyone here is behind this. Nobody is going to kill each other. Just try to live normally while we await rescue, everyone.

Fujiwara: Will do. [Leaves]

Ko: I can do that, yep yep!

Junpei: Alright. I think I can do that as well. Come on, Sora-san. [Gets up and leaves]

Sora: Oh! Alright! Let me stop by my dorm first, though! [Follows after]

  
  
Nagai: Hey! Please do wait for me! [Rushes to catch up]

**Hironaka is the next person to stand up.**

Hironaka: Alright. Yuharo-san, how about we stop by your dorm to get yours, and then we can have Ono-shi and Heikkinen-shi accompany us?

**Oh, yeah. I forgot about that almost entirely.**

Yuharo: Alright…

**With that, Hironaka and Yuharo leave.**

Tomita: I suppose I should go get mine as well, so that I can notify all of you whenever I find something. [Leaves]

**The rest of the people start to all leave, one by one. I get up from the table and head outside of the room, making my way down to the dorm rooms. I pass Ono on the way out, and I wave to her. We had something to do later, so I need to be nice to her! I don’t want her to hate me or think I’m rude already!**

**I enter the dorm room, hoping that it won’t take too long to get my device thing. Upon entering, I see that TEN and Sae are having a conversation, and Sae looks a lot less angry than he did previously. I go up to them, with a little cheerful laugh.**

Aapo: “Uh… hiya, you two!”

TEN: HI HEIKKINEN-SAN!! SAE-SAMA WAS JUST TELLING ME ABOUT HIS GAME SHOW!

**Well… as the Ultimate Game Show Host, it makes sense to, well, have a game show. Sae looks proud as he continues talking. I sit down on my bed, picking up my device. It looked like a tablet, in all honesty.**

TEN: COME AND JOIN US! I'M SURE THAT SAE-SAMA WOULDN'T MIND. RIGHT, SAE-SAMA?

Sae: I suppose I wouldn’t mind it, at least for now.

**…? Why would I hang out with someone that just accused one of the others of creating a fake fox that’s threatening us? Then again, he seems a little calmer now…**

[SPEND TIME WITH SAE AND TEN?]

[ **YES** /NO]

**I suppose I can spend a little time here…**

Aapo: Oh! Sure! I might have to go in a little bit, though! I had something planned, but I don’t know when it’s happening, so…

TEN: YAY! FEEL FREE TO STAY AS LONG AS YOU WANT!

Sae: Alright.

Sae: Anyways, as I was saying, my game show is one based on trivia more than anything else.

Aapo: Oh, like Jeopardy? I’ve seen that on the TV before while Äiti and I would eat dinner.

**Sae’s expression turns into one of annoyance.**

Sae: Just because a game show is about trivia does not automatically mean that it’s Jeopardy, you idiot.

Aapo: Oh, sorry…

Sae: It’s fine. It’s kind of like Jeopardy, but there’s a lot of differences. For example, the formatting of our questions. I don’t have that big board that Jeopardy has, and we offer more money than Jeopardy does.

Sae: Nobody has ever won my game show ever! People constantly come on to try their luck, to no avail! It’s quite an accomplishment if I do say so myself.

TEN: NOBODY?

**Sae smiles proudly. Jeez, he really isn’t like his normal self right now. At least I think so? Maybe this is the real Sae, and he was just stressed before?**

Sae: Nobody! I studied so much trivia when I was younger, so I have a lot of weird facts that not even the best of the best know! People love the show, too. Maybe more than I'm comfortable with, but they still like it nonetheless.

TEN: I KNOW SOME TRIVIA! NOT AS MUCH AS YOU, SAE-SAMA, BUT I KNOW A DECENT BIT. IT SOUNDS SUPER FUN TO RUN A GAME SHOW!

Aapo: Yeah, I bet it is! To be honest, I don’t know much trivia. Maybe you can teach me sometime?

Sae: No.

**Oh. Okay.**

Sae: All of the trivia I know is very important, and I don’t want you getting in on any of it, just in case you decide to participate in my game show one day.

TEN: WELL, GIVING SOME ISN'T THE SAME AS GIVING ALL! PLUS, IT'S SOMETHING TO DO WITH THE TIME WE HAVE ON OUR HANDS, IS IT NOT?

Sae: I suppose so. Still, not up to giving you two trivia facts at the moment.

**As Sae is talking, I get a message on my tablet. Looking down, I see that it was from Ono.**

[UME ONO]

\-------------

Uh. I hope I am doing this right!

Do you think that you can come down 

to the kitchen right now? Hironaka-San 

told me to message you. |5:24 PM|

**It’s that late in the day? Nevertheless, I type out a response.**

[AAPO HEIKKINEN]

\-------------------

Oh! Yeah, sorry. Got caught up in conversation

in my dorm! Give me a moment 

and I’ll be there. |5:25 PM|

[UME ONO]

\-------------  
Alright. I’ll see you there! 

|5:25 PM|

I **get up from where I’m sitting, setting my tablet under my pillow and turning it off.**

Aapo: Sorry, you two! I have to go now, I’m needed in the kitchen…

TEN: OKAY! HAVE FUN NOW! WE'LL TALK TO YOU LATER!!

Sae: Yeah, yeah, whatever. TEN-san, can we please continue our discussion?

TEN: YEAH, WE CAN!! [Waves to me before turning back to Sae]

**Oh, okay. I head out of the room again, making my way down to the kitchen. All of this is surprisingly taking my mind off all of the stuff we were told earlier! It’s nice.**

**It takes me a minute to get there because I’m tired and slow, but upon entering the kitchen, I see Ono making tea while Hironaka and Yuharo are conversing.**

[SPEND TIME WITH ONO, HIRONAKA, AND YUHARO?]

[ **YES** /NO]

**Well… I came here to recite Yuharo poetry! I take a seat next to the two of them as Ono walks over and sets down four cups of tea, taking a seat as well.**

Ono: Drink up, everyone!

Aapo: Alright!

Hironaka: [Takes a sip] Ah. Thank you Ono-shi.

**I take a sip as well, and… it tastes really good! Not as great as coffee, but it’s still really good! Yuharo pulled his mask up a bit to take a sip, and I can see tons and tons of scars. It’s really concerning, but I don’t comment on it.**

Yuharo: [Take a big sip of tea] Ono-san! This is… really good. Thank you…

Ono: Of course. It’s what I do [Laughs]

Aapo: It’s really good! No wonder you’re the Ultimate Tea Maker…

Ono: Aw, thank you again! I suppose there’s a reason as to why you’re called the Ultimate Poet, too?

Aapo: Huh?

Yuharo: Yeah… Didn’t you say that you were going to… read us some poetry?

Aapo: OH! Yeah, I did! Sorry, my mind is a little blank. Would it be okay if I say some you all probably don’t know? Äiti would read me poetry to bed when I was little and… yeah.

Ono: Äiti?

Aapo: Uh, like… it means mom. My mom would read me poetry all the time as a kid.

Ono: Oh! Okay.

Yuharo: Go ahead… I just want to hear something… doesn’t matter what.

Aapo: Okay! Uh… here we go, I guess!

**I take another sip of my tea before standing up and reciting some poetry from my memory. I’m scared, but… I said I would already.**

Aapo: Unhappy about some far off things,

Aapo: That are not my affair, wandering

Aapo: Along the coast and up the lean ridges,

Aapo: I saw in the evening

Aapo: The stars go over the lonely ocean-

**Before I get to say the next line, I hear the door to the kitchen open behind me. I freak out a little bit and stop talking, spinning around on my feet to see who it was.**

Miyu: Oh! Did we interrupt something?

Zenigata: We didn’t mean to, uh… sorry about that.

Aapo: Oh! Uh. Hi, I was just reading some poetry for Yuharo-san.

Miyu: Poetry!! That's so cool...

Yuharo: That was… really good, Heikkinen-san… Gyo agrees!

Aapo: Aw, uh… thank you, Yuharo-san, and thank you, Gyo!

**Hironaka coughs, as we turn to look at him as he stares at the two new people.**

Hironaka: What are you two doing here?

Zenigata: Well, Tomita-san asked us if we wanted to make dinner for everyone, to emulate the feeling of regular life for now, and… we said yes.

Ono: Oh. Perhaps I could make everybody some tea to go along with all of that?

Arimitsu: That sounds like a good idea, and we can always use the help. I've never really… made food for this many people! So…

Yuharo: Oh… have fun, then…. I’m going to go to my room now, I’m tired…

Hironaka: Do you want me to take you to your room?

Yuharo: No, I think… I think I’ll be fine…

Aapo: Goodbye, Yuharo-san! [Waves]

Ono: Goodbye.

**With that, Yuharo left the room quickly. Well, that was… eventful, I think. At least for me it was.**

Miyu: [To Hironaka and I] What about you two?

Hironaka: What about us?

Miyu: Are you two going to help us make dinner for everyone? It’s almost six by now, and a lot of us need to eat…

Aapo: Oh! Uh…

Hironaka: I’ll help. I have nothing else to do anyway. Heikkinen-shi?

**Well… I don’t really know how to cook all too well, besides maybe boiling some water… Should I?**

[SPEND TIME WITH MIYU, ZENIGATA, HIRONAKA, AND ONO?]

[YES/ **NO** ]

Aapo: Uh… I don’t really have much experience with making food or anything… I think I’ll sit this one out.

Hironaka: Alright. Stay safe, Heikkinen-shi.

Miyu: Yep yep! Goodbye!

Ono: Goodbye. It was fun talking to you.

**Zenigata says nothing, but they wave at me instead.**

Aapo: Goodbye!!

**I leave the room after a minute, and I kind of just… stand there for a moment. We’re going to have dinner soon, so I don’t really have much time to do stuff. I guess I could just… go to my room and sit in there. Or I could try to talk to some of the people that I haven’t talked to much! I decide to head to the living room, it looks cozy enough.**

**Heading in, I see Nagai, Junpei, and Nao all sitting around, a few chairs pulled into a small semi-circle formation.**

[SPEND TIME WITH NAGAI, JUNPEI, AND NAO?]

[ **YES** /NO]

**I pull up a chair to the group and I wave as I sit down. Hopefully, I’m not accidentally like… forcing myself into their conversation.**

Nagai: Oh, hello, Hekkinen-san!

Aapo: Hello!! Sorry to just kinda sit down here without asking, I was just kind of bored. There’s a lot of people in the kitchen right now, and I couldn’t help make dinner, so…

Junpei: It’s a living room, isn’t it? All are welcome here, yeah?

Nao: Yes, correct! Anyone is welcome here, Heikkinen-Dono! We are quite glad to have you here!

Junpei: [Laughs] It also gives me a break from these two egos, you know?

Nagai: Hey! We aren’t that egotistical! We just love ourselves! With good reason, too.

Aapo: [Giggles] That sounds like an ego.

Nao: Nope! Not an ego, dear, it’s confidence!

Junpei: Sure it’s only confidence…

Aapo: Imagine having confidence! Couldn’t be me.

**The three turn to look at me, and I feel nervous now.**

Aapo: Uh… did I do the joke right?

Junpei: Yes you did, but… you should have some confidence, you know?

Nao: I agree! You are quite a nice individual and should be confident in yourself.

Nagai: I get you, though. I didn’t really have much confidence as a child because I was… well… born into the wrong body, you know? Perhaps we can boost your confidence!

Aapo: Ah, you guys don’t have to do that! I was just trying to make a joke… also, as Junpei would say, mood!

Junpei: Mood to what?

Aapo: The being born in the wrong body thing.

Junpei: Oh, yeah. Mood.

Nao: It's also a mood for me as well!

Nagai: Woah.

Nagai: I just realized we’re all trans! That’s so cool, I think!

**How the heck did I just realize that too?**

Aapo: We are!! That’s so cool! We're like... a gang of trans people...

Nao: Part of a gang, eh? Who’s the leader?

Junpei: ??? Leader? What do you mean by that?

**We all looked at Nao, a confused look on our faces.**

Nao: In every group, there’s a leader, correct?

Nao: So who’s the leader of this group?

Nagai: Nao-san, perhaps we can all be the leader of this? There’s no need for just one leader. Or a leader at all.

Nao: I’ve never seen a group have more than like… one or two leaders before! It sounds delightful though, so… yes! Let’s all lead it!

Aapo: Alright! Sounds like a plan!

Junpei: Yep yep, I’m on board with that. Is there anybody else we could ask to join us?

Aapo: Uh… Zenigata-san uses she/they pronouns, so maybe them? She’d probably be willing to join us! I dunno if I wanna invade anyone else's privacy to ask them to join though...

Nagai: That sounds good! I think we should ask Hironaka-shi as well! He told me something about it when he was on his way to the kitchen earlier, so…

Nagai: I don’t know about anyone else, though.

Nao: Fair! Perhaps we can ask them after dinner then?

Junpei: That seems like a good time. Maybe after dinner he’ll loosen up a little bit.

Aapo: Huh??

Junpei: Hironaka-shi has been kind of… you know. Tense. He’s been more gentle with people like Yuharo-san and Sae-sama, but he’s still pretty tense.

Nagai: Well of course he is! I’d be too if I didn’t have my mind off-

Nagai: …what Bee told us earlier.

**We all go quiet for a moment before Nao speaks.**

Nao: Well, change of topic! After dinner it is, then! Speaking of which, did they say when they were going to be done?

Aapo: Well, they have to make food for eighteen people, and there are only four in there, and only three are actually cooking food, so… it’s probably going to take a while.

Nagai: Aw… I was looking forward to eating super soon! I’ve been rather hungry since I woke up.

Junpei: [Laughs] Tell me about it.

Aapo: Now that you mention it, I’ve also been hungry since we woke up, so…

Nao: Probably because we were out for a few days before waking up. I don’t think we can really eat in our sleep, darling.

Aapo: Oh! Yeah, that makes sense. Sorry, my brain is slow right now…

Junpei: Your brain is going brrr?

Aapo: What?

Junpei: [Sighs] Another thing you probably wouldn’t know.

Aapo: Oh! Sorry!

Junpei: Nah, don’t apologize, it’s fine.

  
  
**We sit there and talk for a few more minutes, maybe about twenty or so, before Junpei’s tablet vibrates.**

Aapo: Why do you have your tablet on you?

Junpei: Just in case… uh, the food’s done now. Tomita-san just made a group chat and messaged everyone, so we should be getting over there soon.

Aapo: Oh, alright!! Come on you guys!!

**Driven by hunger, all four of us quickly get up and head to the kitchen.**

**In the kitchen, most people are already there by the time we arrive. Tomita walks up to the four of us.**

Tomita: Your plates are all right next to each other on the round table. Go sit down and eat, I assume you are hungry.

Junpei: Yep, we are. It seems like everybody's having fun talkin’ over there.

Tomita: I think they are. Come on now.

**All four of us, as well as Tomita, sit down at the table. People are conversing and whatnot, and I decide to talk to the person who was next to me, which was… Fujiwara. I immediately remembered what happened between him and Sae earlier, and I feel bad just thinking about it. I take a bite out of the food on my plate (it was just some chicken and rice, but it tasted good nonetheless) before talking.**

Aapo: Hi, Fujiwara-san!

Fujiwara: Uh, hello there.

**Something seems off about him. He isn’t eating, and by the look of his plate, he hasn’t even started.**

Aapo: Uh… How are you doing? Are you going to eat anything?

Fujiwara: I’m doing quite fine, Heikkinen-san. Besides Sae-shi accusing me of making Bee. Also, I… really do not like eating in front of others, so…

**I still can’t believe that Sae accused Fujiwara of creating that fox thing. I mean… he’s stuck here all the same as we are! Not going to dwell on it too much, though.**

  
Aapo: Oh? Is there a reason why you don’t like eating around people?

Fujiwara: Personal reasons.

Aapo: Okay, sorry about trying to pry! Why don’t you take it to your room and eat it?

Fujiwara: Well, this dinner is supposed to make us feel like we’re living a normal life, correct?

Aapo: …Yeah, it is.

Fujiwara: Well, what good would it be if I went to my room during this time? It would be hard to pretend I’m living a normal life eating in my dorm.

**Actually, he kind of has a point.**

Aapo: I… Yeah, that’s fair. It definitely wouldn’t feel normal. Just… be sure to eat at some point? We haven’t really eaten in a while, from what I’ve been told.

Fujiwara: I will, don’t worry. I’m waiting for everybody to finish eating and to leave, and then I will.

Aapo: Okay! That’s good!

**I finish eating and get up from where I was sitting, washing my plate and glass before putting them up. I go back and sit down next to Fujiwara.**

Fujiwara: ??? Aren’t you done eating?

Aapo: Well, I wanted to give you some company while everybody else finishes!

**Fujiwara looks kind of… well, he doesn’t really have the ability to show us his facial expressions, but his voice goes quiet.**

Fujiwara: I… That’s nice of you. I appreciate it, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: Of course! Is there anything you want to talk about?

Fujiwara: Uh… I don't think I have much to talk about. Apologies.

Aapo: Oh, it’s fine! I can think of things for us to talk about! Uh… what’s your favorite animal.

Fujiwara: Foxes. That was a really basic question, but I mean… I don’t expect much from anyone right now.

Fujiwara: Foxes have done me no wrong, and they are quite cute. I have a pet fox at home, actually.

Aapo: You can have foxes as pets?

Fujiwara: Yes, you can. At least I think so, since I have one.

Fujiwara: I hope he’s alright at home…

Aapo: I’m sure someone at your house is taking care of him.

Fujiwara: My sister always told me that she’d take care of Min-Min if I ever died or went missing… so I know he’s doing okay. I suppose it's just paranoia.

Aapo: Understandable!! I would be too if I had a pet at home.

Fujiwara: You don’t have any pets?

Aapo: No, it's just me and my Äiti.

Fujiwara: Äiti? Sorry, I’m a little confused.

Aapo: Mom. It means mom. I live with my mom and she’s been trying to help me find a place to stay, now that I’m almost eighteen. She’s the sweetest person in the world, honestly. I can’t wait to see her again!

**I look around the table to see that most people are done eating and that Fujiwara and I are the only two people left at the table. How had I not noticed that people were leaving?**

Aapo: Oh. I should probably go now so that you can eat!

Fujiwara: I didn’t realize that people had left, but… yes, please leave so I can eat. Thank you for keeping me company during that, I will say again that I’m very happy you did so.

Aapo: Of course! Have fun eating, Fujiwara-san!

Fujiwara: I will. Have a good night, Heikkinen-san.

**With that, I get up from the table and head outside the kitchen, heading to my dorm room.**

**When I enter, I see that nobody else is in the room. They all must be out talking to people or something. I get into my bed and pull my tablet out from beneath my pillow, checking the time. It’s only 6:39 pm right now, so I still have some time in the day to do something. I see that I’ve gotten a few messages.**

[REN TOMITA -> EVERYBODY GC]

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Hello everyone. Dinner is done now. 

Please do stop by and get something to

eat. |6:05 PM|

[JUNPEI ??? -> EVERYBODY GC]

\------------------------------

Alright, we’ll be there in a second. 

|6:05 PM|

[RYOU SAEMONSABUROU -> EVERYBODY GC]

\------------------------------------------

Nobody said shit about dinner? Whatever.

TEN-san and I will be there in a minute. |6:06 PM|

**Not a lot of people talked in the group chat then. Oh well, I go on to check my other messages.**

[SHOMA NAGAI]

\-----------------

Hey, where are you? 

We were supposed to talk

to Hironaka-san about joining

our cool little group. |6:36 PM|

**Oh, I completely forgot about that!**

[AAPO HEIKKINEN]

\-------------------

Oh my god, I’m so sorry! I completely forgot

about that and went to my room!

Do you guys still want me to come 

over there, or…? |6:43 PM|

**After a few minutes of waiting, I finally got a response.**

[SHOMA NAGAI]

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Nope! We already asked while we

were waiting for your response.

He said that he’d join as our

group therapist! |6:55 PM|

[AAPO HEIKKINEN]

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Okie! Should we make a group chat, or…

|6:55 PM|

[SHOMA NAGAI]

\-----------------

We’re going to make it tomorrow, since

we’re all kind of tired right now and want

to head to bed. |6:58 PM|

[AAPO HEIKKINEN]

\-------------------

I should probably go to bed as well,

I’m also really tired. I’ll talk to you

tomorrow? |6:59 PM|

[SHOMA NAGAI]

\-----------------  
Alright! I’m heading to bed now,

have a good night, Heikkinen-san! |7:06 PM|

**I have no idea why he takes so long to reply, but I reply right away.**

[AAPO HEIKKINEN]

\-------------------

Alright, goodnight! |7:07 PM|

**With that, I set my tablet down under my pillow.**

**The door opens, and I look up from where I was laying to see that TEN, Nao, and Sae had entered.**

Aapo: Hi you guys!

TEN: HI AGAIN! WE'RE ALL KIND OF TIRED, SO WE DON'T REALLY WANT TO TALK ALL TOO MUCH! WHY ARE YOU IN HERE RIGHT NOW??

Sae: That doesn’t fucking matter, can we all get the fuck to sleep now?

Nao: Someone’s grumpy I see…

Mihara: ON NO, YOU TWO AREN'T STARTING THIS AGAIN, GET IN YOUR BEDS NOW.

Sae: [Mutters something under breath] Fine.

Nao: Alright, dear!

**The two of them get into bed while TEN turns off the light, getting into xyr own bed.**

TEN: GOODNIGHT EVERYBODY!

Sae: Yeah, yeah, fuck off and go to sleep.

Nao: Goodnight to you too!

Aapo: Night…

**As I lay there, I stare up at the ceiling, think over all of the events from today. How did Tomita expect us to pretend all of this is normal? I have no idea how I’m going to manage…**

**Eventually, I manage to finally sleep. Hopefully, all of this is just a really vivid dream, and tomorrow I’ll wake up, Äiti shaking me awake and telling me it’s the day I go to my new school.**

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**I hope so, at least.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end of the prologue! Next chapter is going to be the profiles for every student. <3


	4. INTERMISSION: PROFILES

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The profiles of the BZ kids.

_**REPORT CARDS** _

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A rising poet in the world of poetry, Aapo Heikkinen is often sitting up in their room and writing away. They aren't exactly the most social of people either. Writing is really the only thing they do in their free time, and they don't have many friends. They have a few other hobbies, though, which include playing the piano and tending to the garden that their mother has. Very socially awkward, but they do their best.

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Famous game show host and ball of rage alike, Ryou Saemonsaburou is quite the character. Having spent all of his time as a child studying trivia, he knows a lot of surface level knowledge about a lot of things. He's also, as it's been said, a little ball of rage. He can and will insult you if he gets the chance. He really doesn't like being around people, as they are bothersome to him. He's never had any friends; he doesn't want them at all. Anger and self loathing is most of what he is.

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Flamboyance and ego personified, Shujin Nao is the best ringmaster around. Having been the ringmaster of their family's circus since age 12, they know their stuff about showbiz. Their ego is incredibly big, and it's almost unbearable. However, they are incredibly charming and charismatic, so most people find their ego almost endearing. They haven't had a haircut in a while, either, but that just adds on to their beauty.

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Incredibly tall and loud, TEN is an enigma. Nobody knows their name, nobody knows how they became so good at what they do, and nobody knows why they dress up like they do. They run a train that's used as a moving attraction and is overall really popular in Japan. Xyr train crew also has similar facepaint like xey do!

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Kind, gentle, and equally mysterious at the same time. Asa is a very calm person, and is calm even when he is expressing his other emotions. He's always had to be calm in situations, as he has many siblings he's had to care for. He's almost like a parent in the way that he tries to take care of everyone who's younger than him, and has been called dad by multiple people. He isn't great around people obsessing over him, but he does his best.

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An absolute ball of energy, Yuki is one of the happiest people you'll ever meet. Much unlike her twin, Yumi, Yuki isn't exactly too happy with tradition. She only wears traditional clothing because she is forced too by her family, but she does anything else she can to rebel. For example, she dyes her hair a lot, she wears contacts, and she does whatever she wants. She's a free spirit, and although it can be tiring to be around her sometimes, she can brighten up a room if she says the right things.

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The twin of Yuki. She loves tradition, and finds her sister's rebellious nature annoying. She's been playing the Koto since she can remember, and enjoys playing her instrument a lot. She is very minimal in her interactions, as she doesn't like talking to people a lot. She speaks in short sentences, and only speaks more if she's giving lectures to people. She is a tired, traditional, and distant individual.

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A small, fragile boy. Amai Yuharo is very, _very_ timid, fearful, anxious, and paranoid. He is so afraid, he never shows his face, unless it's for performances. His hair is braided because it is very unkempt and messy, and he hasn't cut his hair in years. His mask is a little dirty, and his hand puppet is in a slightly less ideal condition. His hand puppet, Gyo, is his only friend, and he began to talk to Gyo as a child. Eventually, he learned how to make it seem like Gyo was actually talking through the medium of Ventriloquy, and he learned how to market this. People scare him, but he needs to make a living somehow.

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One of the most monotone people that you could ever know. Jin Tetsuya is incredibly serious, and is well know for solving multiple murder cases with their knowledge of how different injuries look. He's rather fragile, though, and looks like he could die himself at second. He's not good with human interactions, as he was raised farther away from society, near a graveyard caretaking place.

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One of the most serious people you'll ever meet. As a therapist, Daisuke knows how to react and handle situations, and how to deescalate and calm people down. He became a therapist because his brother had terrible anxiety, and was too scared and too terrified to go to a therapist out of the family. He's extremely serious about his job, and is able to confront others if they get in the way while he's doing his work. He has dad friend vibes, and cares about everyone, even if he doesn't show it all the time.

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Freya is a very versatile voice actress. Her versatility is what gives her the title of "Ultimate Voice Actress," as she can play a very diverse set of characters, both male and female. She's a very kind person, and even if she isn't the smartest, she's very charismatic and lovable. She's received many different fan made contents by her fans, which makes her feel grateful. She loves to show off her voice when she can, and loves to give back to the fans in any way she can.

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Professionalism personified. She's worked hard to make it as far as she has in her field, and gets annoyed when people downplay those achievements and treats her like an object. She is always professional, and loves to take leadership positions when she can. She's able to let her guard down on rare occasions, but you have to be very close to her. She's also a clean freak and hates her living space being unkempt or dirty. 

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Chiyu Miyu is a darling. She's a little behind in life, as she's had to do a couple of grades over again, but that doesn't stop her. She's an advocate for xenogender rights and acceptance, as she is catgender herself. She is like a mom, and carries around snacks and bandaids in her bag. She's always trying to help you have the best diet, and always makes sure that every person of every body type can feel happy about their diet. She's incredibly inclusive and accepting of every person she's come across. She loves you.

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Moe is a very basic person, in terms of personality. They don't do much outside of toy making, and are apathetic towards a lot of things. They like to talk with people, though, and wish that they had more friends. They really only talked with children and their parents before, and want to spread their love of cottagecore with others. She hates kids, and people that are kid-like at all. She is an expert toymaker, and although she likes making toys, she hates the privileged children who treat her like shit over toys.

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Sora grew up in the southern states of the US for a lot of her life, before she moved back to Japan. Her accent has never gone away, and only fades away when she's singing. She's very friendly and hospitable, and enjoys making friends with others. She loves to show off, and she loves to act as everybody's best friend when she can. She's been into opera since she saw a pretty opera singer once, and has trained to get her voice so that it was perfect. She's very hardworking when she needs to be, but is also lax and playful when hard work isn't needed. 

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Junpei is a very softhearted person, and is physically unable to be truly mean to someone. They enjoy the playful teasing, of course, but they would never intentionally upset someone. He isn't the brightest crayon in the box, but they try their hardest to be helpful, and dislike when people discredit his attempts. He loves giving hugs, and honestly, his hugs are amazing. He knows that he has the potential to scare people, and tries to come across as nicely as he can so that people don't have to fear him. 

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Ume is about as calm as you would expect her to be. She's does her best to be helpful, as she's been raised to think that she needs to help others to be accepted by them. She's good at telling which teas are good for a person at a time, and recognizes tea as her only way to de-stress. She dresses the way she does because she doesn't really have shoes of her own. She's very poor, and only gets by in the shop her parents own.

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Shoma is one of the most flamboyant people in the competitive ice skating field, and that's saying a lot. He is very extra in every outfit he wears, including his casual clothes. Whenever he isn't ice skating, he wears his ice skates, as he has gotten completely used to walking in them. He is well known for his extremely extra yet beautiful outfits, and his multiple gold medals he's been awarded.  
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 _ **PROFILES: COMPLETE.**_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first chapter starts next Sunday! I'm so excited to get into the bulk off the series so soon!


	5. Chapter 1 [1-1]: It's Looking Up or Looking Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long to update, I've been a little busy with online schoolwork.

SUN: Hey, are you alright, [LOVER]? You've been really isolated recently, and I don't think that's very healthy. You should... really let someone else take over from here on out. 

**A sigh can be heard.**

MOON: I haven’t been isolating, I’ve been taking care of [STAR]! They’ve really been in need of my care, you know.

SUN: know that, but… it’s not good for you to spend all of your time around [STAR], and… I just wanted to let you know that. [STAR] is rather… I don’t know. It jusT isn’t healthy.

**Suddenly, one of the people gets… defensive.**

MOON: What?! Why do all of you say that? I’m not being unhealthy! I…

SUN: Cut it out. I know for a fact that what you are doing is unhealthy. Please consider letting someone like [EARTH] taking care of [STAR], or possibly letting me-

MOON: I’m fine! Really, I’m really happy that you’re concerned, but… I’m okay. I’m the only one who can help [STAR] right now. Trust me.

SUN: I honestly believe that [EARTH] and I are more qualified to help others, but… if you say so. You have my number, correct? You can call or text me if you need any help, I understand how hard it can be to constantly be helping people.”

MOON: I… Alright! I will… I promise I will! Just… yeah. I’m the only one who can help right now. Please don’t help unless either of us ask you to help, alright?

SUN: You have my word.

**T** **here’s a small laugh that comes from one of them, and…**

SUN: _I'm being serious. Please, [MOON]._ _We’re all worried about you._

MOON: … I said I promised, [FOUR], I’m being serious too! Here, I’ll even make a pinky promise to you! You know I never go back on those!

SUN: I…I know you don’t. Give me your pinky, then.

There’s a shuffling sound, and the two figures can be heard laughing.

MOON: There you go! See? I pinky promised! That means I’m telling the truth.

SUN: Fine, fine, I believe you. Now, you should probably go home. You look tired, and you should probably get some sleep.

MOON: I am! Schoolwork’s been getting so much harder to do now. I’ll see you later?

SUN: Maybe? I’m going on a date with [ASTEROID] tomorrow, so I might not be able to talk much.

MOON: Wait, really?! Congrats! Tell [ASTEROID] I’m happy for the both of you!

SUN: Will do. I’ll see you later.

**The sound of the two figures walking away from each other is heard, before it all fades to black.**

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**When I wake up the next morning, I expect to wake up in my own bedroom. I fully expect to wake up to Äiti lightly shaking me so that I can get ready to write or go to school. Then… I realize that I’m still here. So it wasn’t a dream… God, that’s… I do not like that one bit!! Why am I still here??**

**There isn’t too much time for me to process that fact, though. Instead, my awakening is abrupt, because somebody’s shouting already. I pull my monopod out from under my pillow and check the time…**

**5:53 AM.**

**Why? Why are people yelling at five in the morning? I just want to sleep…**

Aapo: What’s going on…? It’s so early…

TEN: THANK GOD, HEIKKINEN-SAN IS AWAKE!

Aapo: What’s going on?? I’m so confused…

Nao: I am this close to losing my mind, dear!

Sae: I… I am also close to losing my fucking mind.

**So it was Sae and Nao going at it again… Why? What could have possibly happened? I am so tired already and I’ve only been awake for about five minutes.**

Aapo: Alright, alright. What happened?

Nao: I woke up this morning and saw that Sae-dono was awake! So I asked if he slept at all and… he just exploded! He’s being rather irrational, and it’s so annoying.

Sae: I. No I didn’t. I told you to fuck off one time, because I don’t need you to fake concern for me! What the fuck? Don’t blame this on me, you know what you did.

**Nao’s facial expression drops, and they look… a little too serious.**

Nao: Oh? And what did I do? What could I have possibly done, Sae-dono? What have I done to you that has made you so… angry?

**They sound like they’re trying to make Sae even angrier, in all honesty. They’re even getting on my nerves, and I usually don’t find anything too annoying…**

Sae: Stop fucking mocking me, idiot. You fucking threatened me! You know you did! Don’t try to lie now, you’re just trying to make me look bad!

Nao: No! When did I threaten you, Sae-dono? What did I say that made you feel _oh so_ threatened, huh?

Sae: You said you were going to force me to sleep, and you _know_ the implications of that, do you not?! Or are you too stupid to even realize what you said?

**That… sounds very serious, actually.**

Aapo: Quiet down, you’re going to wake up everyone else… Nao-san, why would you say that? That’s not nice, especially because-

Nao: I didn’t say that, he’s lying! I told him that I would make him sleep if he didn’t go to bed soon, because being awake all the time isn’t good!

**That doesn’t exactly sound like a threat to me, but… it does kind of seem like one if you can’t pick up the fact that it’s just a way to jokingly show care…**

Sae: That’s a threat, is it not?! You didn’t say that last part, either, so… You… you were going to hurt me or choke me and make me become unconscious, and… and…

**He looks scared.**

Aapo: Uh… Nao-san? That could be seen as a threat… even if it isn’t what you meant… Maybe if you said that last part, he wouldn’t have taken it the wrong way?

**Nao looks annoyed now. Yikes!! Am I doing something wrong now?**

Nao: How could that be perceived _other_ than how I meant it? I find his explanation of it to be completely subpar. It’s not good, and therefore I don’t see it as a threat.

Aapo: Well… ‘I’m going to make you sleep’ sounds like you’re threatening to hurt him in some way… in all honesty. Even I would get scared and irrational because of that.

TEN: STILL, IT DOESN'T WARRANT THIS KIND OF BEHAVIOR! I AM.. SO SO TIRED.

TEN: I'M GOING TO GET A DRINK. GOODBYE. 

**With that, Mihara leaves, and Nao gets up to follow.**

Nao: I’m going too. I’m not arguing over if I threatened someone or not anymore. This is so ridiculous!

**They leave the room, and I see Sae let out a sigh as he sits back down on his bed. What a way to start the morning. I check the time again, and the clock says 6:05 AM. No use in going back to bed, I suppose. Just… still annoyed that I had to wake up to that. Whatever. I might go get something to eat, I’m only now realizing how hungry I am.**

**Firstly, though, I’m going to make sure Sae is okay. He might not want me to ask, but as long as I don’t accidentally threaten him, I think I should be good? I hope so, I haven’t been alone with Sae like Mihara has, so I’m probably going to get on his nerves…**

**TEN is one of the only people who’s been consistently talking to Sae. Realizing that is… oh god, I really need to do my best to cheer him up. He looks kind of sad, too…**

**I get up from where I’m sitting and I walk over to Sae’s corner of the room. He’s looking down, and doesn’t notice that I’m there. At least I don’t think he does? He isn’t looking up at me, so…**

Aapo: Uh… hiya?

Sae: What do you want?

Aapo: Uh… well… I wanted to make sure you were okay!

**Sae looks confused at that.**

Sae: I’m fine. I don’t need you to ask me that. Really.

Aapo: Well… you looked sad. So… yeah. Are you sure you’re okay?

Sae: [Sighs] Yes, Heikkinen-san, I’m fine. Just really pissed off at that fucking… clown asshole.

Aapo: I’m sure they didn’t mean to-

Sae: They should have known, and you all should have too! You and TEN-san are fucking idiots, really. I don’t get along with them and vice versa. They were _definitely_ not showing genuine concern for me, and could probably tell that I was going to get mad at them for that.

Sae: That motherfucker did all that shit on purpose! Way to make me look like a fucking dick over nothing.

**Oh yeah. I kind of forgot that Sae’s dislike for Nao is mutual. I… I can actually see Nao doing something like that to tick him off on purpose. Especially with how they were acting earlier…**

Aapo: I can see that happening, in all honesty.

**Sae laughs a little, but still looks a little bit taken aback.**

Sae: So you aren’t going to take their side on this? What a surprise.

Aapo: Well… if they’re in the wrong, of course I’m not! If they purposely threatened you, that’s wrong of them!

Sae: Oh… so you aren’t going to like. Be mad at me or lie about this situation to everyone?

Aapo: Huh?

Sae: Uh… yesterday, they told everyone that I started the fight with them. You know the one, yeah?

**I decide to make an attempt to be snarky like Sae, as a joke to lighten the mood a little bit.**

Aapo: Oh, yeah. I was there, you know, you don’t have to remind me of something that I knew about, you… dummy.

**Sae lets out a small laugh, and even if I don’t exactly sound like Sae in the slightest, I feel proud that I got him to laugh about something.**

Sae: You… you sound like a Kidzbop-ified version of me. I know you can cuss, if you’re going to make an impression of me, at least do it right. Dummy isn’t a swear word. 

Sae: Wait… speaking of Kidzbop, did you know that they have more top 10 hits than Madonna, and that most of their sales come from physical CDs?

**That’s… a little random. I know that he knows a lot of trivia, but I don’t get why he’s just going on a rant about it. It might be a stress relief thing? Who knows.**

Aapo: Uh… no, I didn’t. That’s… a little off-topic though. Weren’t you talking about like… how Nao-san was being a… bitch?

**Sae immediately looks embarrassed, and goes back to his normal self… and by normal self, I mean he looks like he wants to kill me right then and there.**

Sae: Yeah, I was. Sorry for the tangent, I think. Anyway, they told everyone about the fight and that I was the one who started it.

Sae: Which I didn’t mind all too much? In all honesty. I don’t give two shits what people think of me, but they told the story and painted me as a complete asshole and, well, they’re a bitch.

Aapo: Huh?? They did? When was that?

Sae: Before you and the others came into the workroom yesterday.

Aapo: Yikeies! That’s not good… do you want me to tell everyone that they blew it out of proportion?

Sae: Huh?

Aapo: I was there, yeah? I can just… tell everyone that it’s not true! Even if you are kind of… rude-

Sae: Oh, I know I am. Don’t have to point it out.

Aapo: Ah… sorry…

Sae: Uh. It’s fine, I think? I don’t know. If you want to? We aren’t like… friends or anything, so I don’t see why you would, but I think I’d appreciate it? Maybe, I don’t fucking know.

Aapo: Well! I will then! Later, though, everyone is probably still sleeping.

Sae: Right… sorry about waking you up, I didn’t mean to get loud about that.

Aapo: It’s fine! It means I can get a headstart on the day!

Aapo: If you want to join me, I might go to the living room for a while! I know that Mihara-San and Nao-San went to the kitchen, at least I think so…

Sae: I don’t know? You don’t seem all too fun to hang out with.

**Ouch. Okay.**

Sae: I think I will, though. I really don’t have much else to do.

  
  
Aapo: Oh! Alrighty! Let’s get going then?

Sae: Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Hurry up before I change my mind.

Aapo: Okay!!

**I head back over to my bed, sliding my tablet under my pillow before realizing… there’s a closet? I can hear Sae laugh a little, so my confusion and surprise must be obvious. He sounds very… uneasy though.**

Sae: Yeah, uh… check the closet. I don’t know how to tell you about what’s probably in there.

Aapo: Oh. Okay. Give me a minute…

**I move over to the closet, and… has this always been in the room? I feel like I would remember a big closet in our room. Then again, I’ve only been in here twice so far. I open the closet, and…**

**It’s a walk-in closet. One of those really big ones. There’s also a laundry basket in the corner, which is also pretty big. The thing that catches my attention the most, though, is that it’s divided into four parts. I…**

**These are my clothes. This is what my wardrobe looked like back at home. What the hell? In the other parts, there are clothes that look like Sae’s, Mihara’s, and Nao’s. I turn back to Sae, and… I probably look terrified or something, because Sae just sighs and looks down.**

Sae: They really are planning to keep us here for a while. It’s bullshit, and actually kind of terrifying to think they know what we wear, but…

Aapo: Yeah, no crap! That’s scary, but… I mean, at least we’ll be clean? We’ll be like… fresh.

Sae: I guess so? It’s still really fucking weird.

Aapo: Yeah… Give me a second to get dressed real quick.

Sae: Alright. Don’t take too fucking long.

Aapo: I’ll try not to!! I can’t make any promises, though.

**Closing the closet door, I grab one of the outfits that is in what seems to be my section of the room. They really prepared different outfits, too… Normally, I really only wear one type of clothing, but they went out of their way to make sure there was a variety… yikes.**

**Whatever. I get dressed in the first thing I grab, putting yesterday’s clothes into the laundry basket. I leave the closet and walk over to Sae.**

Aapo: Alright! Done! Let’s get going!

Sae: [Standing up] Finally. Took you long enough. Living room, right?

Aapo: Yep!!

**Sae makes his way to the door, and I follow.**

**This morning has been so tiring, jeez. At least Sae is calmer now, I can see it in the way he’s walking. He’s not tense right now, and he was yesterday… Honestly, though? I don’t think I can blame him. We’ve been kidnapped, I… I really can’t blame him for freaking out so much.**

**We eventually reach the living room, and… there’s people there. Already. It’s still really early, why are people awake now? I can understand Mihara and Nao being awake because of Sae, but…**

Fujiwara: Oh. Good morning, you two. We didn’t expect anyone else to be awake right now.

**Sae tenses immediately. Oh god, I… thankfully, he doesn’t say anything. Better make sure that he doesn’t while I can!**

Aapo: I thought TEN-san and Nao-san went to the kitchen? Didn’t you guys see the head in there?

Hironaka: We thought that they were the only ones awake besides ourselves.

Aapo: Actually, why _are_ you two awake so early?

Hironaka: We could ask you two the same thing-

Fujiwara: Hey, there’s no need to be rude about it, at least I don’t think so. They haven't said anything rude yet, so…

Hironaka: I’m just saying that we could ask the same, it’s too early for all of us.

Fujiwara: It comes off quite rude, though… Never mind that, though. We’re awake because I was being vocal during a dream-

Hironaka: Correction, a nightmare.

Fujiwara: Okay, okay, nightmare. I was being quite vocal during a nightmare and accidentally woke him up. Again, apologies-

Hironaka: Really, it’s okay. You don’t have to apologize.

Hironaka: Now.

Hironaka: Tell us about why you two are awake.

**Sae was even more tense at that. I sit over on the couch across from Fujiwara and Hironaka, and I motion for Sae to sit next to me. He quickly does, and immediately looks down.**

Aapo: Alright! Can do. I don’t know about everyone else in the room, but I woke up to Sae-sama and Nao-san fighting about something earlier

Fujiwara: Ah. I see. Well-

Sae: Don’t say a fucking word.

**Fujiwara goes quiet. I… He’s lashing out again!! The nice Sae’s not here anymore, yikeies.**

Hironaka: What were they fighting about??

Sae: None of your-

Aapo: Sorry to interrupt, Sae-sama, but can I tell them about what happened?

**Sae looks over to me, before nodding and letting out a small sigh. They’ll listen to me, I think!**

Sae: Go ahead. Just hurry up.

Aapo: Okay!! Sae-sama was awake when Nao-san woke up, and Nao-san had made some comment about… what did they say exactly?

Sae: They asked what I was doing awake, and since I knew that they weren’t being genuine, I told them that I didn’t want them faking concern for me. I then told them to fuck off.

Aapo: Alright, thank you! After that, Nao-san told him that they were going to force him to sleep. Basically-

Sae: They threatened me, the fucking bastard.

Aapo: Yeah… They got into an argument about it, and TEN-san and I woke up because of it.

**The room is silent afterwards, and Hironaka was staring at Sae. Fujiwara’s facial expression was hidden, and he just remained quiet. Yikes… I’m getting nervous, can one of them say something soon? Please?**

**Another few seconds pass, before Hironaka sighs.**

Hironaka: I can’t believe that someone would threaten you, especially with our circumstances. Are you okay?

**That was unexpected, but… it’s a lot better than what he could have said.**

Sae: Fine? Yeah, I’m fine now. I was… I thought that they were going to over-exaggerate the story to make me look worse again.

Hironaka: Again?

Aapo: Long story…

Sae: Yeah. It’s a long story, I don’t want to talk about that all too much.

Hironaka: We won’t talk about it then. I forgot to say good morning earlier, so… good morning, you two.

Aapo: [Waves hands] Thank you!! Morning to you two as well!!

Sae: Morning, Hironaka-shi.

Fujiwara: ...

**Ouch, that has to hurt, just a little bit. Maybe being here with these two is a bad idea.**

Aapo: Do you guys have any idea on what we should do?

**I guess we can actually confront our situation. Not that I want to, but we probably have to.**

Fujiwara: Not really, no. We could probably begin to try to find a way out of here, but… it’s rather early, and I am assuming that we’re all too out of it and tired to do anything of use right now.

Aapo: Maybe later, then?

Fujiwara: Later sounds fine. Perhaps we could do something else productive in the meantime?

Sae: What the fuck would even count as productive here?

Hironaka: I suppose we could wake everyone else up. We could get everyone to help with the possible escape later. For now, though, we could make everyone breakfast or just something to eat in general. I feel like that would be productive, would it not?

**I literally cannot help with this. I can’t cook at all, I normally just… microwave food or Äiti makes it for me.**

Aapo: Ahh… I’m not really good at cooking… I don’t think I’d be too helpful, sorry…

Sae: I… I can cook, leave all of that to me. Heikkinen-san, I suggest you stay here with Hironaka-shi.

Hironaka: I… was planning on cooking, but I suppose I can stay here.

Aapo: Huh?? Sae-sama, you can cook?

Sae: What… Of course I can. What kind of idiot do you take me for?

Aapo: Huh?? I just thought you wouldn’t like that kind of thing...

Fujiwara: Perhaps throwing around insults isn’t the best thing to do, they were just surprised, most likely.

Sae: Fujiwara-yogisha, I literally did not insult them, I just asked if they took me for an idiot.

**Fujiwara adjusts his mask, and a small sound of annoyance can be heard. I can’t blame him, though. If I was being treated like that for no good reason, I’d be pretty annoyed!**

Fujiwara: Ah, I see. Apologies. However, that’s still rather rude to say.

Fujiwara: But I suppose I do not mind… I’m going to the room, Hironaka-shi, I’ll message you later.

**Fujiwara gets up immediately and leaves, heading back down the hallway and making a turn.**

Aapo: Oh, goodbye Fujiwara-san! We’ll talk to you later I think!!

Hironaka: Yes, goodbye, Fujiwara-shi.

**With that, I had no clue on what I should do next. Sae, Hironaka and I were all just… sitting in an uncomfortable silence. If Sae and Fujiwara start fighting, I’m going to probably be mad. Probably, because I don’t know if I can find it in my little body to hate Sae, but… two enemies? In under a full day? It seems a little excessive. I’m… something pulls me out of my thoughts.**

Sae: [Getting up] Well, I’m going to go make breakfast for everyone. Uh… don’t follow me or talk to me for at least thirty minutes after I finish.

Hironaka: Alright. Thank you for doing this. It’s very kind of you, Sae-shi, and I’ll be sure to let everybody know that you did this for them.

Sae: That’s oddly nice too, but whatever. Thanks. Bye-bye now.

**And then Sae left, which left only Hironaka and I. It’s too early in the morning for this stuff…**

Hironaka: Well, there’s no use in staying here, I suppose.

Aapo: Huh?

Hironaka: Sitting around here won’t do us any good.

Aapo: I… yeah, it’s not exactly productive or anything, but what are we supposed to do?

Hironaka: Well.

Hironaka: I was thinking about going around and waking everyone else up.

**Uh…**

Aapo: Shouldn’t we let them rest? They might be grumpy if we wake them up…

Hironaka: By now, it’s time for everyone else to wake up. We all need to get an early start on the day.

Hironaka: Besides, by the time we wake everyone else up, Sae-shi should be done with whatever he’s making. Right now is probably the best time to wake everyone up, do you agree?

**Personally, I would hate to be woken up this early, but I suppose that it’s an okay idea.**

Aapo: I guess so.

Hironaka: Alright. Well, I’ll talk to you later.

**He gets up and begins to walk away, so I quickly stand up and rush after him. I wasn’t going to just sit here in the living room alone!**

Aapo: W-wait! I’ll come with you!

**He looks down at me, and… nods.**

Hironaka: Fine, follow me.

Aapo: Will do!!

**So the two of us walk in silence to the dorms. It takes a lot more effort out of me to not fall behind, but I manage. Jeez, why does Hironaka have to be so tall and walk so fast at the same time?? Whatever, I guess that’s just a tall person thing. Eventually, we reach the dorm halls.**

Aapo: Ah, we can skip that one, that’s Sae-sama and I’s dorm! Nobody else is in there, I don’t think.

Hironaka: Alright.

**We move to the dorm right next to mine, and… Hironaka knocks, but it’s a light knock. How were we supposed to wake anybody up like that?**

**From the inside of the room, someone lets out a shriek. Oh, uh… Hironaka looks concerned for a minute, before the door opens.**

Yuharo: Uh… Hello, Mister Hironaka… Hello, Heikkinen-san… What are you two doing here…?

Hironaka: We came to wake everyone up. Are you okay? We heard a scream come from inside.

Yuharo: Oh… that was me. I was surprised by the… by the door knocking.

Aapo: Oh…

Hironaka: My apologies, I didn’t mean to scare you.

Yuharo: It’s… fine… The others are also awake now… Should we come out yet…?

Tetsuya: Already ahead of you.

**Behind Yuharo was Nagai, Tetsuya, and Junpei.**

Aapo: Oh, uh… good morning, you three!

Junpei: Morning.

Nagai: Why hello there! Kind of the two of you to come and get us.

Hironaka: I suppose it is. How about you guys go on down to the living room and wait in there while Sae-shi cooks-

Yuharo: Sae-sama is cooking…? I… think that’s very nice of him…

Hironaka: It is. For now, though, we have to wake everyone else up, so please go wait in the living room. I’ll message you all in the group chat once it’s time to go.

Junpei: Alright, come on Nagai-san. We’ll go on ahead.

**Hironaka and I move out of the way, so that those two can get through.**

Tetsuya: Wait for me.

**And then Tetsuya follows. They disappear as they turn the corner and head to the living room. Yuharo is still in front of us, though…**

Hironaka: Shouldn’t you get going now, Yuharo-san?

Yuharo: Uh… can I come with you two…? I… you two are safe…

Hironaka: Yes, of course. Come on now, we still have… two more rooms, excluding my own and Heikkinen-san's.

**The three of us then move across the hall to the next two rooms, and I take a turn at knocking on the door.**

Aapo: Hello! Open up please!! You guys in there gotta wake up!!

**I wait for another minute, and before I can knock again, the door opens.**

Vander: Heya, little enby! Mornin’!

Aapo: Hi, Vander-san!! Sae-sama is making breakfast right now, and we wanted to wake everyone up and tell them to go to the living room until it’s ready!

Vander: Ah, gotcha!! Ladies, let’s head out!

**A few groans are heard from the inside of the room. Guess they aren’t too happy about being awoken…**

Miyu: Nya… do we have to?

Do: I would rather sleep…

Ono: I suppose I have to. Come one everyone…

**Ono walks up to the door, and she notices me.**

Ono: Good morning to you, Heikkinen-san. Good morning to you too, Yuharo-san! Uh… morning, Hironaka-san. It’s nice to see you all again.

Aapo: Ah, morning!!

Hironaka: Yes, good morning.

Yuharo: Hi… Good morning…

Ono: You said that Sae-sama was making breakfast, correct?

Aapo: Uh… yeah, I did.

Ono: Then I shall go help. I’ll see the three of you later, goodbye.

Aapo: Bye-bye!

**Ono leaves, and Vander laughs as the other two in the room walk up to the door.**

Vander: Morning, sleepyheads!

Do: Out of my way.

**Do makes her way out of the room and walks off, and Miyu follows. They both looked tired, and I feel bad about waking them up. Yuharo looks super uncomfortable as Do passes, and Hironaka allows the boy to get closer to him.**

Vander: Aw, man! Oh well, they’ll wake up fully soon enough.

**At least Vander is happy!**

Aapo: Yeah, they will. You should probably head over to the living room now! We only have one more room of people to wake up, and Sae-Sama should be done very soon!

Vander: Okay! I’ll talk to you later, little enby!

Aapo: Alrighty! Bye-bye!!

**Vander disappears down the hallway, and we move to the last room. I decide to let Hironaka and Yuharo take this door, so I stand back a little bit as he knocks.**

Hironaka: Go on, Yuharo-san. Go ahead and ask them to come out.

Yuharo: Eek! Me…? Why me…?

Hironaka: It’s all you have to do, I’ll do the rest of it. I just want for you to call them out here.

Yuharo: A-alright…

**Yuharo brings his hand up to the door, and brings Gyo up a little as well.**

Yuharo: [High pitched voice] Hiya! My friend Amai here wants to let you know that you need to wake up!

Hironaka: Good job, Yuharo-san. I’m proud of you.

Yuharo: Proud of me…? Thank you, Mister Hironaka…

Hironaka: Of course.

**The door opens after a moment, and Tomita is there.**

Tomita: Hello.

Hironaka: Good morning. Is everyone else in there awake yet?

Tomita: Yes, they are. What did you need?

Hironaka: Breakfast is going to be done soon, and we wanted to wake everyone up beforehand.

Tomita: Ah, I see. Sora-shi, Ko-shi, and Zenigata-san are in here with me, should I wake them up?

Hironaka: That would be good, yeah.

Tomita: Alright, give me just a moment.

**Tomita walks back into the room and wakes everybody else up.**

Ko: Good morrrrning world!

**Oh yeah, I should’ve expected her to be a morning person. At least the other two aren’t making too much noise…**

Tomita: Good morning, Ko-shi. Please head to the living room and wait for breakfast.

Ko: Aww… you don’t want me here? That’s so mean, Tomita-chan!

Tomita: Don’t call me that. Also, everyone else is in the living room right now, so… it’s not anything personal.

Ko: Aww!! Alrighty!! I’ll go…

**Ko leaves the room, waving enthusiastically to everyone.**

Yuharo: Scary…

Aapo: Hey, it’s okay-

Tomita: Sora-shi and Zenigata-san will be up in a minute. If you three want, you can head to the living room while these two get ready.

Hironaka: I suppose so. Should we head out, you two?

**I mean, it’d be a waste of time to wait around, so…**

Aapo: Yeah, let’s go. It was nice to see you, Tomita-san!

Tomita: You too, Heikkinen-shi. Later today, meet me in the workroom. Vander-san, Zenigata-san, and I are going to be discussing means of escape. I’ll tell Nao-shi about it later.

**Oh yeah! I completely forgot I agreed to helping them out…**

Aapo: Alright! I’ll see you later then!

Hironaka: Come on now, let’s go.

Aapo: Bye!

Tomita: Goodbye.

**With Hironaka and Yuharo, I head back down the hallway. Hironaka has his tablet in hand, and is typing on it. I wonder who he’s messaging. Before we turn the corner, he stops moving, which causes Yuharo and I to stop.**

Hironaka: Sorry to stop, but Fujiwara-san wants to walk with us. He’ll be here in just a moment.

Yuharo: Alright… Fujiwara-san is nice, so… I think that’s okay…

Aapo: Alright. Is there any reason he wants to walk with us? That seems a little… inconvenient, seeing that we could just arrive at different times.

Hironaka: He’s scared of Sae-shi. It’s more comfortable for him to walk with us.

**Oh… Well, that’s very understandable, waiting around for a little bit longer won’t be too bad. Sae really needs to be a little nicer to him, it’s not nice to accuse people of being kidnappers… especially since we’ve all been kidnapped. It’s stupid, really, but I can kind of see why Sae thinks like that? It’s still really mean to voice those concerns though.**

**After a minute or so of waiting, the sound of walking can be heard. I turn around, and there’s Fujiwara.**

Fujiwara: Hello again you two, and hello, Yuharo-san. Apologies for taking so long.

Yuharo: It’s… fine…

Hironaka: Yeah, let’s just head out now. By now, we’re probably late for breakfast. [Laughs]

**So we finally head down the hallway, and make our wave to the living room. I wonder what time it is… how long have I been awake so far?**  
  
Upon entering the living room, there is… nothing happening, surprisingly. I was expecting a lot more going on. Actually… Sae is in the kitchen right now, along with Ono, so I shouldn’t have been surprised. Nao and Mihara were here, too, so I’m assuming nothing too bad went down in the kitchen. 

Nao: Hello there, darlings! What on Earth was taking you all so long?

Hironaka: Did nobody tell you? We went to wake everyone else up.

Vander: Ah, were we supposed to tell them? We kinda assumed they were woken up by you too…

Aapo: No, they were awake before us, so…

Hironaka: Either way, it doesn’t matter. The others should be here soon, it was taking Tomita-shi a while to get them to wake up.

Ko: Man, everyone in that room is a bunch of sleepyheads!

Do: Not everyone can be a morning person like you, Yuki…

Ko: I guess so! I guess that just makes me unique!

Do: You are… definitely unique. That is definitely a word that can describe you.

Ko: You know it, sis!

**While those two are doing… whatever those two do, Tomita, Sora, and Zenigata arrive.**

Tomita: Apologies for the late arrival. Is everyone here?

Aapo: Everyone besides Sae-sama and Ono-san, but they’re in the kitchen making us breakfast.

Tomita: I see-

Sora: Heya, sugars!

**Tomita is cut off by Sora loudly talking to Junpei and Nagai, who are both laughing as she does so. We wait for a minute, before Tomita attempts to speak again.**

Tomita: I see, are they almost done-

Zenigata: Hey, Tomita-san? Just sit down and relax for now, breakfast will be done when it’s done.

Tomita: …Alright. Fine.

**Tomita goes to sit down with Zenigata. Hironaka goes to sit down as well, and Yuhai and I follow. I curl up into a ball on the couch, and Yuharo is holding onto Hironaka’s arm. Fujiwara sits on my other side, and we decide to talk about whatever comes to mind while we wait.**

Aapo: So. 

Aapo: Hironaka-san.

Hironaka: Hm?

Hironaka: Yes, what is it?

Aapo: What's a psychotherapist?

Aapo: I can like... get the therapist part, but that's about it.

Hironaka: Oh. 

Hironaka: Well, it's like... basically a broad term for any person who practices psychotherapy.

Hironaka: Like... both psychologists and psychiatrists are psychotherapists.

Aapo: I see...

Aapo: Thatt must mean you're really great then. To be an Ultmiate of something so broad.

Hironaka: I guess so. It's not like I'm good at much else. 

Aapo: I'm sure you are, man! You're really good at helping others, yeah, but you're good at so many other things! I just... don't know what yet, because I don't know you.

Hironaka: I guess. What about you? I only got to hear a little bit of poetry from you. Did you write that poem you recited or...

Aapo: No, that's not one of mine. I'd never write something so... bland, I guess. That one was just... one I read a lot in my childhood.

Hironaka: Could you give an example of one you _have_ written? You're supposed to be the best of the best, and I'm not... really one to like stuff like poetry. Just don't have the creative side, I guess.

Hironaka: I'm still willing to learn about it, though.

Aapo: First of all, everyone has a creative side, it's just... more prominent in some people, I guess. 

Aapo: Second of all, I'm just... not really sure I want to recite some of my poetry right now. There's a lot of people around...

Hironaka: You don't have to if you don't want to, Heikkinen-san. Maybe just say a name of one of your poems instead, or we can drop the topic all together.

**He's giving me an out?**

**That's not something I'm really used to, in all honesty. I'm so used to people begging me to do things until I just give in and do them, but... this is a lot nicer.**

Aapo: Thank you. That means a lot, Hironaka-san!

Aapo: Can we just... drop it for now? I can probably tell you when I'm feeling less anxious.

Hironaka: Of course, kid.

**I don’t know how much time passes, but after about what feels like an eternity, Sae comes out of the kitchen. Almost everyone turns to look at him, and he begins speaking.**

Sae: Breakfast is ready, so… come and eat. Ono-san prepared drinks for all of you too, so be sure to thank her for that.

Ko: Yay!!! Food time!! Come on, let’s go!!

Do: Yuki, what are you-

**Ko grabs her sister by the arm and drags her off into the kitchen.**

Sae: Watch where you’re fucking going, you idiot!

Sae: [Sighs] Alright. Whatever, please just hurry the fuck up before I regret cooking for you all.

**Everyone else got up from where they sat and made their way to the kitchen, but… I waited for everyone else to go in. Hironaka looks at me weirdly, but I just motion for him, Yuharo, and Fujiwara to go in.**

**Once everyone else is inside, I walk up to Sae, who looks at me with this… confused look.**

Sae: Didn’t I say to just go on and eat already?

Aapo: Ah… sorry, I just wanted to stay behind and thank you, since for some reason, no one else did.

Sae: Huh?

Aapo: You heard me right, Sae-sama! I wanted to thank you.

Sae: I… you already thanked me earlier, I see no reason for you to thank me again.

Aapo: Please just accept it, please? I want you to know how appreciative I am!

Sae: I’m… completely at a loss for words. Uh… you’re welcome? Thank you for being appreciative, I suppose.

Aapo: Of course! Come on, let's go eat now. Do you want to sit next to me?

**Sae looks completely confused, and then annoyed.**

Sae: I don’t need your pity. I’ll sit wherever, just not next to you.

**Huh?**

**I don’t have time to ask about that, as he enters the kitchen. I follow close behind and… there’s a plate on the table waiting for me. I sit down and begin to eat, and realize that I was… pretty fricking hungry. I must have forgotten about my hunger while I was waking everyone else up.**

**Sae can really cook. This tastes amazing... I know we can't have him cook every night, because that's just... not fair, but I so wish that we could. He worked so hard to make all of this for us... Even while he was feeling scared because of Nao. He might be a bit rude, but really? He seems like a good guy.**

**While eating, Tomita clears her throat, and I look over to her. I think she has something to say.**

Tomita: Please feel free to continue eating, but I think that since we are all here together, I should talk about our plan.

Miyu: Our… plan? I don’t think anyone else knows about whatever that is, silly!

Tomita: Well, that’s because I’m only bringing it up now. I have decided that today is going to be a… very thorough day. I have decided to split everyone into groups, and-

Sae: Are we all actually going to cooperate, though?

Tomita: Probably not, but it’s worth a shot for freedom, is it not?

Sae: …

**Well then.**

Tomita: As we all know, that fox thing told us-

Fujiwara: Bee is the fox's name, if I remember correctly.

Tomita: Okay… Bee told us that there was no way to escape and, well, I think she’s wrong. Coming with me will be Zenigata-san, Vander-san, Heikkinen-shi, and Nao-shi.

Tomita: Any objections from any of you? I talked about it earlier with you all, so I hope none of you changed your mind.

**None of the mentioned people say anything, and Tomita smiles slightly.**

Tomita: Good. I don’t know if anybody else wants to join us, but we will be looking for a way to escape. We will be checking around the one half of the building, while everyone else will check the other half.

Tomita: You can take a break in your room if needed, but we really need everyone to be investigating for today. The faster we get out, the better. Now, I think that’s all I have to say, any questions?

Sae: Yeah, since when did you decide you were the leader?

Aapo: Sae-sama…

Sae: Be quiet. I’m asking a question.

**Oh. Okay.**

Tomita: Well, I suppose that someone had to try to lead everyone. Let me ask everyone else, actually. Do any of you have any objections to me taking a leadership position?

**Nobody speaks up, and neither do I.**

Tomita: Well, that settles it. Nobody else besides you has a problem with it, Sae-shi.

Sae: I… guess I don’t mind either, I just wanted to know.

Tomita: Well, now you know. Does anyone have any more questions? I want to get back to eating.

**Again, nobody else says anything. Tomita smiles and looks back down to her plate.**

Tomita: Thank you, enjoy your meals, everyone.

**After that whole thing, everyone goes back to eating. God, having to sit at a circular table really isn’t fun, it’s all cramped and I’m sitting with a bunch of strangers. I don’t know if I want to talk to anyone besides me this time, either. Next to me is Nagai, and on the other side is Miyu. I finish up eating, wash off my plate, and sit back down while I wait for the rest of the escape team to finish.**

**Who should I talk to?**

[WHO DO I TALK TO?]

[ **MIYU** /NAGAI/NONE]

_**I’ve talked to Nagai a lot, so I decided that spending some time with Miyu should be pretty good! I don’t want to leave anybody out, so…** _

Aapo: Uh… hiya!

Miyu: Hiya hiya! Did you need something?

Aapo: Nope! I just wanted to talk to you.

Arimitsu: Aww, that's so sweet of you! What do you wanna talk about?? 

**I… I really didn’t think this through… what should I talk to her about? I… Wait! Idea! I’m feeling smart today!**

Aapo: You don’t really look like someone who would be a dietician, I expected you to look a little more... professional. Is there a reason that you dress so…

**I pause for a minute as I think. What’s the word again? I… should know this.**

Miyu: Eccentrically! The word is eccentrically, and yes, I have my reasons! I just think looking cool is pretty fun! My hair is… I just liked dyed hair, and I have some cute little cat ears! To top it off, everyone was always supportive of my fashion sense back home.

**Eccentric. That’s it. I don’t normally use that word in poetry, so… I guess I can allow myself to not know this for once.**

Aapo: I'm glad! Is there any reason for all the watches on your arms?

Miyu: The watches? Yes, actually! I forget the time a lot, so I just... carry a bunch of watches on my arms! My dad made them all for me as well.

Miyu: They're very special to me! I dunno why you're asking, though... I don't think I even remember your name!

**Ouch. Okay, I… good to know I’m forgettable? That’s nice.**

Aapo: Oh, I’m just trying to like… start a conversation. Sorry.

Miyu: No no, it's okay! I'm really happy you noticed! They make me very happy.

Aapo: That’s… really nice. It’s nice to have things of sentiment.

Miyu: I guess it is! Uh… I don’t really want to have the conversation all on me, so… is there anything that you like? Like… do you have anything important to you?

**Oh, I wasn’t really expecting anything to be asked about me. Uh… what’s important to me? I don’t think I really have any like… possessions I’m attached to, in all honesty.**

Miyu: You’re awfully quiet. Are you good? I have a little bit of medicine left in my bag, I might have something to help you!

Aapo: Oh! Yeah, I’m good, I just had to think about the question for a moment.

Miyu: You had to think about… what’s important to you…?

Miyu: That’s honestly a little sad! 

**Thanks for being blunt about it, I guess.**

Aapo: Well, uh… it’s just that I don’t really have anything that’s important to me? No like… prized possessions. If I had to choose, I’d say like… my poetry book. I write a lot of poems in it, so…

Miyu: Ah, I see! Kinda… Important things don’t have to be objects, by the way! Just in case you like… didn’t know that, for some reason.

Aapo: Oh, uh… I completely forgot about that.

Miyu: [Laughs] I can see that!

**I want to bash my head into a wall at this very moment. How did I even forget about that fact??**

Aapo: With that in mind, I do have something that’s super important to me!

Miyu: Ah! Please, go ahead and tell me!

Aapo: My Äiti is very important to me. She’s like… the best! We’ve been through a lot together, and, well… we’re the closest we can be. She’s the greatest. She’s actually the one who encouraged me to write poetry!

Arimitsu: How so?

Aapo: Well, she’s an artist, and has always tried to teach me that I need to allow myself to be creative. I would always talk about how I was scared I would…

**Uh… that’s a little too personal for this. I don’t know her.**

Aapo: Well, let’s just say that her art got stolen by Isä, and I always had to get it back for her on visits to his house. She made sure that nobody would plagiarize my work, though! She’s super scary when she’s in her ‘äitikarhu’ mode.

Miyu: I don’t know what that means, in all honesty, but…

**Her eyes then light up, and she looks like the Arimitsu that I met the day before.**

Miyu: That reminds me of an old folktale a patient told me once!! Do you want to hear about it?

Aapo: Oh! Sure!

**How did that remind her of a folktale? I… am honestly very curious.**

Miyu: Right! There’s an old widow who buys a scroll depicting a very beautiful palace called the Sun Palace! She buys the scroll and goes to her house and makes a beautiful brocade of the palace, cuz she wants to live there. She makes the most realistic brocades, so she thinks that it will be like living there when it’s done.

Miyu: Afterwards, though, wind sweeps through the cottage she lives in and takes the brocade east. She sends her son, Chen, to get it back for her. He has to go over Fiery Mountain and Icy Sea, where he could not make any sounds or words of complaint or discontent.

Miyu: He reaches the Sun Palace after crossing those! Here, he finds the brocade and the fairies, who occupied the palace. The fairies thought the brocade was so beautiful, that they sent a wind to the cottage to bring it to them. They kindly return it the day afterward, and later invite the widow and Chen to live in the castle, and that’s the end.

Aapo: Uh… how exactly did this remind you of me?

Miyu: You care about your mother and got her precious paintings back! Nothing else really resembles you, but it’s that part I see the strongest resemblance in.

Aapo: Oh! I can… actually kind of see that!

Miyu: See? I told you! Anyway, that story is also about following your dreams, and you said your… Äiti, I think… always told you to do so!

Aapo: Yeah!! Jeez, you know quite a lot about stories…

Arimitsu: Well, of course, I do. That’s my whole… thing, you know? I-

**Before she can finish her sentence, a voice comes from behind both of us.**

Tetsuya: Uh... hello. Sorry to bother you, but do you think I could join you? Nagai-san and Junpei-san finished eating already, and I don't know what to do.

Aapo: Oh! Uh… sure! Why not?

Miyu: We'd love to have you over here with us!! We were just talking about important things and stories! Feel free to join us.

**Tetsuya sits down, and I turn back around to focus back on the conversation.**

Tetsuya: That's nice. To be completely honest, I don't have anything that's super important to me.

Tetsuya: Actually, that's a lie. I find it less "nothing is important to me" as it is "nothing is unimportant."

Aapo: Huh?

Tetsuya: I find everything and everyone important. Nothing is unimportant, at least not anything that I can think of right now.

Miyu: That's such a sweet thing to say!

Aapo: Honestly, I didn't expect you to come out and say something like that. You just... don't seem like the kinda guy to be sentimental.

Hara: I get that a lot. I can assure you that I am human and that I feel the entire spectrum of human emotions, I just have a flat affect in my voice. Not able to show emotion well.

Aapo: Oh... sorry for saying something so mean, then. Is there a reason why you have one of those?

Tetsuya: Don't apologize, I get that a lot... and yeah, I do, but I'd rather not disclose my mental illnesses to random strangers I just met. I don't want to be judged right now.

Aapo: That's fine!! You don't have to, but just know we won't judge you! You are cared about.

Miyu: Sorry to interrupt, but I don't think I've met you before! Who are you?

Tetsuya: Jin Tetsuya, Coroner.

Aapo: He finds causes of death! I learned that yesterday.

Tetsuya: Yeah. That's what I do for a living.

Miyu: Oh! Do you have fun doing your job?

Tetsuya: Huh.

Miyu: Do you have fun doing your job! Like... is it fun to look at dead bodies? Did you willingly choose to look at them?

**Actually, yeah. That’s a good question. Who would willingly choose to look at dead people for a living?**

Tetsuya: Well... not really. My family runs a gravekeeping business, and sometimes I'd have to go help the police with discovering the cause of death and the identities of the victims. I don't know why, since I was... a literal child, but it's not the funniest thing in the world. Useful, but not fun.

Aapo: That sounds terrible.

**Jeez, that was way too blunt.**

Tetuya: Yeah... it really is. Maybe I can get another job.

Miyu: Ooh! You could be my assistant!! I don't have one of those yet\\!

Aapo: Ooh, that sounds like fun, right, Tetsuya-san?

Tetsuya: I suppose so.

**The three of us continue to talk for a while, but I can’t really remember all of it as we go by each topic so fast it’s hard for me to keep up. I don’t know how much time passes either, but it feels like, at most, five minutes.**

**I hear the clicking of shoes coming up behind us, but I pay no attention to it as I continue to laugh along with Miyu and Tetsuya.**

Tomita: Sorry to interrupt but…

**I turn to see Tomita behind me. Oh shit, I completely forgot about that!**

Tomita: Heikkinen-shi, are you ready to go? Everyone else is done, and we’ve been waiting for you.

Aapo: Waiting on me?? I didn’t know you all were done yet, I… sorry, you two, but I have to go now!!! I’ll talk to you later!

Miyu: Alrighty! Bye-bye!

Tetsuya: Oh, alright. Goodbye now.

**I get up from the table and follow Tomita to the door, where… everyone else was waiting. How did I not notice they were gone from the table? I feel like I made a fool out of myself, and even though I feel like I’m going to crumble in a second, I walk out the door with everyone else and we head out.**

**I don’t talk through most of the walk there. Zenigata was giving me angry glances, and even Vander looked a little annoyed… how long did I keep them waiting for? I feel like I should ask Tomita, but I don’t know if that would end up being too great. I decide to push my luck.**

Aapo: Uh… how long did I keep you guys waiting, exactly? I’m really sorry, but I didn’t really know what time it was…

Tomita: About an hour or two.

Aapo: An hour or two?!

**I did not mean to say that out loud.**

Tomita: It’s fine, it just means we start a little later than we were supposed to. Try to remember next time, though.

**I stop talking, and so does Tomita. A few minutes later, we end up at… the laundry room. That’s kind of odd, but I don’t think anybody seriously investigated the room before, so it’s fine.**

**Tomita opens the door, and looks back at us.**

Tomita: How many of you have your tablets on you?

**Oh, was I supposed to have it on me?? Oops.**

Aapo: Sorry… I don’t have mine on me.

Nao: I don’t either, Tomita-dono…

Vander: I do though! I made sure of it this morning!

Zenigata: I do too.

Tomita: Thank you two. Alright, I’m going to go off by myself here. Zenigata-san, Heikkinen-shi, you two will search… the workroom, in extreme detail. Nao-shi and Vander-san, you two can search the bathrooms.

**I look over to my assigned partner, and they do… not look happy. I smile at them, but she turns her head away from me slightly. Okay…**

Aapo: Oh, uh… alrighty! Should we like… get going now?

Tomita: Yes. It’s alright to start, just make sure that anything that you all find is sent in the group chat.

Nao: Group chat?

Tomita: You two are in it as well, but since Vander-san and Zenigata-san are the only ones besides me to have their tablets, just let them know if you find anything.

Aapo: Oh, alright!

Tomita: With that, I’m going to begin my investigation. Goodbye.

**Tomita leaves the hallway and heads into the laundry room, leaving us four out in the hallway. Vander and Nao happily make their way down the hall to the bathrooms, leaving… Zengiata and I.**

Aapo: Should we get going now?

Zenigata: Yeah. Let’s go.

**Zenigata makes her way to the workroom across the hallway, and I struggle to keep up with her. Once we enter the room, she sets her tablet on the table in the middle of the room.**

Aapo: Uh… how should we do this?

Zenigata: What do you mean by that?

Aapo: Well… how should we search the room? This room is… kind of big for two people to search on their own, in all honesty…

Zenigata: Uh. How about you get one half and I get the other?

Zenigata: If you find anything of importance, you can go ahead and type it into the group chat, I don’t mind you using my tablet. As long as you don't break it, alright?

Aapo: Alright!!

**I head over to one side of the room, and Zenigata moves to the other side.**

[INVESTIGATION]

[THINGS TO INVESTIGATE]

**-CALENDAR**

**-CLOCK**

**-COMPUTERS**

**-STORAGE CLOSET**

**-WINDOW**

**On the wall, I see one of those wall calendars. I walk over to it and see that there’s a date on it circled in red ink. May 19th of… there’s no year on the calendar at all. Is today May 19th? I mean… it shouldn't be, because this would have needed to be circled either today or yesterday, and someone would have definitely mentioned if they found it…**

**I’ll send a message later, so I decide to pull out my poetry notebook from the inside pocket of my weird suit thing, and I write it down. Normally I don’t write anything other than poetry, but I think this can be the one exception.**

**The next thing I take notice of is the clock that’s next to the calendar. Its hands are stuck on the time 9:52. I know that it is… certainly not 9:52. Just to be sure, though, I turned back to look at Zenigata, who was busy searching. I’ll just… check the time once I message the group chat.**

**I don’t see anything else on this wall, so I move over to this… small closet in the corner of my half of the room. On a small sign outside of the door, it says “Storage Closet.” I open the door and I look inside to see some… pretty standard stuff. There’s some jackets in here, with a bunch of other clothes that could probably insulate heat, some goggles, gloves, and some other stuff like fire extinguishers and brooms. There really isn’t anything of interest, so I just write down my findings and head out of the closet.**

**As soon as I get out, I see that there’s a line of computers against the wall. I move around one of the mice for the computer closest to me, and… surprisingly, it works. I don’t bother looking anything up right now, mainly because I just… I don't know what I’d look up here, and I write a small thing in my poetry book. Right above the computer is something that looks like a window, but… I can’t actually see out of it. It’s too high up.**

Aapo: Hey! Zenigata-san!!

Zenigata: [Looks up from where she’s looking.] Oh! Yeah, Heikkinen-san, what is it??

Aapo: Can you come over here real quick? I can’t get up here to see out of this window…

Zenigata: Oh, sure.

Aapo: Alright! Thank you!!

**Zenigata gets up from where she was sitting and searching and comes over to me. I point up to the window, and they look up to it.**

Aapo: I can’t reach it.

Zenigata: I can’t reach it either, I’m not that tall… but I have an idea.

**Zenigata grabs a chair and then stands on it, motioning me over.**

Zenigata: Get up on my shoulders. I think you’ll be able to see through it if we stand on the chair too.

Aapo: On your shoulders?! Won’t I like… fall, most likely?

Zenigata: I’m around children a lot, some even your age. I’m kind of strong. I promise I’m not going to drop you. If I do, it’s on purpose and you pissed me off somehow. 

Aapo: ...

Zenigata: It's a joke, Heikkinen-san.

**Zenigata doesn’t laugh, and… I have a bad feeling about this, but I get up on her shoulders. I can… I’m on eye level with the window now, so she leans a little bit forward so I can see out of it better.**

**Jeez, I’m fucking terrified. I feel like my heart is about to explode. Either way, I look out the window. I…**

**We’re really high up.**

**I can see most of the sky, and when I look down to the ground, it looks so far away. We can’t get out of here from this high up, I…**

Zenigata: What do you see?

Aapo: Oh! Well… can you put me down now?

Zenigata: Oh, alright.

**She puts me down after a moment, and I quickly scribble down what I saw in my notebook. They put the chair back where they found it, before walking back over.**

Zenigata: Well? What did you see?

Aapo: Well… we’re on one of the top floors, most likely. The ground is so far down, and… we probably can’t get out of here from this floor.

Zenigata: So the investigation was entirely useless?

Aapo: I don’t think so! I found some supplies in case of emergencies, and like… a calendar and a clock. There are also some computers, as you probably saw.

Zenigata: I mean, at least it’s something. Let me go report back to Tomita-san.

Aapo: Alright!! I wrote some stuff down if you need it!

**I hold my notebook out to her, and she takes it, reading over the notes I’d taken. We head back over to the table, and she texts the group chat.**

Aapo: Hey, Zenigata-san? What time is it?

Zenigata: “The time? Right now it’s… 1:26 PM, why?

Aapo: The clock over there is stuck at 9:52, so… I just wanted to make sure and be safe.

Zenigata: Oh, okay. Can you please stop talking while I finish up the report? You talk almost as much as children do.

**What is that supposed to mean?**

Aapo: Oh… Okay.

Zenigata: Thanks.

**I stay quiet as Zenigata types, and once she finishes, she starts to head towards her side of the room again.**

Zenigata: Continue searching every little nook and cranny, she said. So… just continue to search.

Aapo: Okay, will do.

**So for the next few hours, we continue our search. It was completely tiring and exhausting, but every time we told Tomita that we couldn’t find anything more, she told us to just continue looking. At this point, we were collecting dust as a possible suspicious item. Zenigata had found a pair of binoculars, but that’s the only super big thing that’s happened in the past few hours.**

Zenigata: I swear to god, I might be overworked everywhere else, but I’m not doing this anymore.

**Huh?**

Aapo: Huh?

Zenigata: It’s nearly seven o’clock by now, she needs to like… let us rest now.

Aapo: You’re right, let’s just… leave. Even I’m too tired for this. Didn’t she say that we could get a break in our room if we needed it?

Zenigata: Yeah, she did. She lied, though, because she hasn’t given us a single fucking break all d-

**Suddenly, Zenigata gets a message on their tablet. They get up and take a look at it, and… they let out a sigh of relief.**

Zenigata: Thank god, we can go to the kitchen now. Tomita-san said dinner’s ready. Let’s go!!

**As much as I want to eat right now, I’ve been up for a long time. I’m really tired, and I’d give anything for a nap. I can skip dinner for the night, I just have to make sure I eat breakfast tomorrow…**

Aapo: You go on ahead!! I’m gonna head to my dorm and go to sleep.

Zenigata: Oh. Are you sure?

Aapo: Yeah, I am. I’m pretty tired after all of this, especially since I’ve been awake all day.

Zenigata: Oh. Okay. I’ll make sure that they save you some leftovers or something.

Zenigata: By the way, I’m sorry about being rude earlier. I was just in a bad mood and I probably shouldn’t have ignored you being nice and whatnot.

Aapo: Oh! It's fine. We all have our bad days I don't blame you.

Zenigata: Uh. Yeah. Thank you for understanding. I’ll talk to you later.

**Zenigata leaves the room, and I exit afterward, heading to my dorm. I’m glad she explained what her problem is, so… I don’t feel as bad for making someone mad.**

**As I walk down the hall, I pass by the kitchen. It’s tempting, but I feel like I’m going to pass out right here and now, so I force myself to head down the hallway and into the actual dorm hall.**

**I finally reach my room, and I enter to see… nobody. It’s just peaceful and quiet, no fighting or anything. I walk over to my bed and pull out my tablet from under the pillow, reading over any messages I had. I only had stuff from the escape group chat and Tomita telling everyone dinner was ready, at around… 7:32 PM. I’m so tired.**

**I get up from my bed again, changing out of my day clothes and into something more appropriate for sleeping. They looked exactly like the special pajamas Äiti made for me.**

**Before I can finally lay down and sleep, someone enters the room. I groan a little, even if it sounds rude because I was tired. Nobody in this room is all too easy to deal with, and I just… I want to fricking sleep.**

TEN: HIYA, HEIKKINEN-SAN! SORRY FOR BURSTING INTO OUR DORM, BUT HERE! I HAVE SOMETHING I NEED TO DROP OFF FOR YOU!

Aapo: Huh? Drop something off for me?

TEN: YEP! ZENIGATA-SAN INFORMED US THAT YOU WERE TIRED AND WERE GOING TO SKIP OUT ON DINNER TNOIGHT, SO SAE-SAMA MADE YOU SOMETHING SMALL! HE DIDN'T ANT YOU TO GO HUNGRY.

Aapo: Sae-sama made me food?

TEN: YEAH. SAID SOMETHING ABOUT HOW IT WAS THE LEAST THAT HE OWED YA! ANYWAY, HERE.

**TEN hands me a small box, and I open it. Inside is… some shrimp and rice. There’s some sort of like… sauce?? I think?? It looks like there’s some sauce on it. There isn’t a lot, but as TEN said, it’s enough. There’s also a fork inside the box.**

Aapo: Oh… this is really nice of him. Can you go tell him I said thank you? I’m too tired to get up and go do it myself, sorry…

TEN: SURE THING! HAVE A GOOD NIGHT!

Aapo: You too!

**TEN leaves the room. With that, I grab the fork and begin to eat. Jeez, I really shouldn’t have skipped dinner, I feel so hungry… At least Sae told TEN to bring me something. That’s really sweet of him!**

**I don’t know how long it takes me to finish, but eventually, I do. I put the fork back inside the box and close it, setting it on my nightstand. I can bring it back to the kitchen tomorrow when I’m not exhausted.**

**Finally, I lay down, and I curl up into a ball and I get comfortable so that I can sleep. It is… definitely easier to fall asleep without other people in the room. I’m… I almost forgot that we’re supposed to be killing people, but I’m… really glad that nobody has died yet! Unless someone died in the time I was in here, but that’s… unlikely.**

**I fall asleep soon after I stop thinking. No use in dwelling over something dumb to think about.**

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	6. Chapter 1 [1-2]: It's Looking Up or Looking Down

POET: Uh… hello there. I know that we don’t really… talk a lot, but… I’ve heard quite a bit about you.

SOLDIER: About me? Are those silly little rumors resurfacin’ again?

POET: Uh… not exactly, but I know about them! Honestly, I think they’re quite dumb. I just wanted to get to know you a little bit more!

SOLIDER: Know me more? That’s really sweet, darling! Come here, what do you wanna know?

POET: Uh… you’re a little old for high school, at least I think so… Ah! No no, sorry, I don’t mean to be mean, but you’re still only in the grade above me…

SOLDIER: Started school a little bit after I was supposed to. Not a big deal, parents ask the same thing. In a not so nice way.

POET: Ah, sorry for asking, then! I’m kind of glad you’re in school, though. [MERCURY] and [VENUS] always tell me about you!

SOLIDER: Oh, those two? They’re my best friends. They’re super hopelessly in love, but don’t tell them I told you!

POET: [Laughs] Sure thing! I definitely see it, though. Jeez, you’d think they’d find out by now… [MERCURY] asked me to write a poem about [VENUS] once, and trust me… I don’t know how they DIDN’T realize right then and there.

**Silence. You can’t see it, but the figure on the left sounds so quiet and unmoving, that you can tell that something’s happened. A small sigh can be heard as well.**

SOLIDER: Yeah. I don’t know either. Those two are always by each other's side. It’s… sickeningly wholesome. Those two could not see each other for three whole decades and still recognize one another. They’re just…

POET: Yeah, honestly! Anyway… you seem kinda tired. You should probably head home and go to bed.

SOLDIER: Yeah, I have some important things to discuss with [KING]. I’ll be talking to you later, right?

POET: Yeah, definitely! Bye-bye now!

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**I wake up in a cold sweat, but I have no idea why. I can vaguely remember dreaming about something or another, but what even happened in the dream was… completely lost on me. It could have been a nightmare from how scared I felt when waking up, but I can’t really tell.**

**What I can tell, though, is that I’m still in this place. I keep forgetting I’m literally in a captive situation, but what can you do, I guess? I also can tell that… nobody else is in the room as of right now. Oh god… that’s weird, but I don’t pay too much attention to it. I grab my tablet from under my pillow and check the time real quick.**

**7:00 AM, it read. Well, that’s just great, I woke up too late, that’s why everyone else is gone. Why didn’t they wake me up, though? I… I guess I don’t mind all that much. I get up from my bed and quickly change out of my nightclothes, not really caring about what I put on, as long as it’s like… somewhat presentable.**

**I go over to my nightstand and grab the empty box from last night. I really need to go throw this away now, don’t want my living space to get too dirty. I should probably take my tablet with me as well since that’s… something I’ve forgotten to do in the last two days. I… thankfully, I actually remember something important about the closet…**

**It had some drawstring bags laid in there. Four of them, to be exact, so I assume that it’s one for each of this room’s occupants. I go back into the closet and grab on really quick, putting my tablet inside of it and smiling. I ignore the fact that there’s a part of my brain telling me it’ll be good to carry evidence around in if a murder were to occur.**

**Not like it would. Stop thinking like that, Aapo!**

**I’ve spent too long here as it is. I grab the empty box again and I head out of the room, making my way down towards the kitchen. As I pass the living room, I realize that nobody is in there… Weird. There wasn’t anybody in the halls either on my way here. I feel like I'm in a nightmare, and I feel panic bubbling up within me. Were they rescued while I was asleep? I really didn’t want to think that was what was going on, and it didn’t seem likely, but… I’m still scared, either way.**

**I enter the kitchen, and thankfully… someone is there. It might not exactly be who I want to talk to right now, though…**

Do: Oh. Hello, Heikkinen-san.

Ko: OH! They’re finally awake, Yumi!

Do: I can see that, Yuki… Please be quiet, they look like they’re already done with you.

**That’s a mean way of putting it.**

Aapo: Uhh… No, I’m just… sorry, haha! I’m a little out of it, but I’m not done with any of you!!

Ko: Awww!! That’s so sweet of you to say, Heikkinen-kun!!

**HHHHHH. Okay! I guess that’s fine!**

Ko: What are you doing up now?? Weren’t you like… sleeping?? Maybe you should go back to bed! You look tired, you know!

**What is she even trying to say? She’s speaking so fast I can barely keep up.**

Do: Did you forget that people wake up, or… 

Ko: I don’t know, in all honesty! I forget everything…

Aapo: Can you slow down a little bit? I’m barely keeping up over here…

Ko: Man, really? Fine.

Ko: What are you doing up right now? You look kind of tired, Heikkinen-kun!

Aapo: Well… Sae-sama made me some food last night, so I got to eat in my dorm. I’m just bringing the trash from that out, uh… what are you two doing in here? Uh… and where is everybody else? I didn’t see anybody out in the living room, which was… odd, to say the least.

Do: Tomita-shi decided that she was going to let you sleep and a few others sleep in today, so… I think they’re all waiting in the workroom, waiting for the rest of you to wake up. 

Aapo: Well, that kind of explains it… she was being super pushy about all of that investigation stuff… Why are you guys in here, then?? Shouldn’t you guys be like… in there waiting with Tomita-san?

Ko: I got so bored of waiting!! I’ve been awake for so long, Heikkinen-kun!! I’m so bored and tired… 

**She rubs her eyes and yawns.**

Do: Everyone, including you, has only been awake for about an hour… 

Aapo: That’s not too long, I don’t think… 

**Ko immediately drops the act and bounces happily.**

Ko: Gotcha! I got you good, didn’t I, Heikkinen-kun? You thought I was really tired, right?

  
  
Aapo: Haha, yeah! You got me there, Ko-san!

Ko: You can call me Ko-chan, you know! It feels less formal than Ko-san does… and being professional is icky! Like Yumi!

Do: … 

Do: I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.

Ko: Of course you are. Can't accept the truth, can ya?

Do: ...

Ko: ...Anyways, are you gonna throw that trash away? Or are you just gonna stand there like an idiot?

Aapo: Oh! Yeah, uh… That’s what I came here to do, yeah… 

**I awkwardly move over to the trash can and throw away my empty food container, before turning back around to face the twins.**

Aapo: Uh… there. That’s all I really came in here to do, so… Should I like… go now? I don’t wanna keep everyone waiting… 

Ko: Aww… You’re so fun to talk to and mess with, Heikkinen-kun! Please don’t go yet!

Aapo: I’m fun to mess with?? I… Thanks, I guess? Should I even be thanking you or… 

Do: Probably not. You’re almost definitely going to be her next target for her pranks or whatever the hell else she gets up to.

**I mean… Yeah, that doesn’t sound too fun, but playing along is a lot more fun. Somehow. Besides, you have to be positive in times like these!**

Aapo: Oh! Uh… I guess I don’t mind that all too much? I don’t really like… know how pranks work all that well, so it could be a learning experience for me!

Do: Why would you decide to _encourage_ her…?

Aapo: Again... I don't really know anything at all, so like... I think it could be a good learning experience for me!

Ko: EEK! I’m so excited! We’re gonna be best friends, Heikkinen-kun!!

**Are we? I mean like… I guess that’s fine. Having friends here might actually make it a lot easier to cope with! I dunno if we're gonna be best friends though... I'm not that good at socializing and making friends. Who knows though!**

Aapo: You know what? I think we will be… maybe! Having friends sure seems like a lot of fun!

Do: Oh my god, the both of you are actually idiots… Whatever. Yuki, didn’t you say you wanted to cut your hair?  
  


Aapo: Huh?

Ko: Oh! Right! 

Ko: I’m gonna cut my hair so that I can match Yumi! It leaves a lot of rooms for pranks, you know?

**But their hair colors are still different… and they both wear different kimonos. It seems kind of pointless, but she looks super excited about it, so I just… do my best to show my support.**

Aapo: Ah! I see! Uh… have fun, Ko-san!

Ko: It’s Ko-chan to you!! 

**Man, she is really persistent about becoming my friend, huh.**

Aapo: Ah, alright, Ko-chan! I’ll see you two later!!

Ko: Bye-bye!!!

Do: You're an idiot for actually agreeing to be her friend. Goodbye.

**That's… really harsh. Just let the girl have some friends, you don't have to like… make pointless comments about me or her.**

**Whatever, I try not to let it get to me. Should I eat something while I’m here? I mean… everyone is waiting on me and the others from yesterday's investigations, but… I’m kind of hungry.**

**I crawl up onto the kitchen counter and reach into some of the higher up cupboards in search of something to eat real quick. I couldn’t make anything, because I can't cook, but maybe I can find something.**

**…**

**Why the actual frick is the cereal up so high?**

**I grab a box of some weird non-branded cereal and bring it down. I’m not even going to bother with putting it up again, I’m just gonna put it in a lower cupboard. I get out a bowl, some sugar, the gallon of milk, and a small spoon and begin to work my magic.**

**I pour the milk, then the cereal, I get my spoon and sprinkle a lot of sugar on top of it all, mixing it around.**

???: My my, what on Earth did I just witness?

**I jump at that, turning around to see… Nao, looming over me. Jeez, that's scary…**

Aapo: Uh, good morning, Nao-san! What do you… mean by that?

Nao: Now now, I may not be the most up to date on many modern things, and I might be stupid-

Aapo: You're not stupid!!

Nao: Quiet. 

**Okay. What’s their problem? Jeez…**

Nao: I might be out of the loop, but I still understand that you aren't supposed to do that!

Aapo: Do what?? Nao-san, you're scaring me… 

Nao: You aren't supposed to put the milk in first… or add sugar, as a matter of fact!

Aapo: Oh, that. I, uh… I don’t know. I… like the sound the cereal makes when it hits the milk-

Nao: Please just hurry up and eat that… stuff. We still need Zenigata-dono to wake up, but please don't waste time, Heikkinen-dono.

**They sound… under their cheerful and enthusiastic tone, they sound… angry. Did I do something wrong?**

Aapo: Uh… Okay. I don’t see how eating is a waste of time, but okay…

**I take my bowl, sit down, and start eating. This cereal isn't as great as the stuff Äiti buys, but it's good enough for me. Nao sits down next to me, and… gods, I can feel them staring me down.**

Aapo: Uh… Are you good, Nao-san?? It's not nice to stare…

Nao: Oh, I must be blanking, my apologies. I’m doing just lovely, deary! Nothing for a darling such as yourself to worry about.

**Their smile is sweet, almost sickeningly so. They are most definitely not okay. I take another few bites of my cereal and look up to them again.**

Aapo: Uh… you sure? You sound really upset, I think… I might just be overanalyzing you, though.

Nao: …

Nao: Perhaps you should be less naive. 

Nao: Perhaps you should be less trusting of everyone’s word. Not everyone is as honest as I am. 

Nao: Do you not think that will get you killed eventually, deary?

**What is that supposed to mean? I’m completely taken aback by this, I honestly have no idea how to respond.**

Aapo: Uh… I have no idea what you’re saying… I'm not gonna die here.

Aapo: What’s your problem? This is… kind of unlike you…

Nao: I think you know why, but… I think I’ll just take my leave instead. It’s rather annoying and pointless by now, but my gods. 

Nao: I've noticed that you're too trusting. You surely know that, right?

Aapo: I know I'm trusting, but I'm not gonna let someone kill me because of that.

Nao: You might, and deary, I'm really worried about you here.

Nao: If I was feeling particularly evil, I could have killed you right here and now.

Aapo: You wouldn't, though...

Nao: Somebody else might, though.

Nao: Watch your back.

Nao: Do keep that in mind. Goodbye.

**I don't have enough time to contemplate it, because I just… stare at Nao, completely dumbfounded as they leave. I think this might have something to do with Sae… Had I done something wrong in trusting that Sae was telling the truth? It sounded believable at the time… but then again, they said it's just because they're worried about me. I don't know anything at all, honestly, this is so confusing...**

**Whatever, I think I’m in the right, so unless it's proven I’m wrong, I’m going to stick with Sae on this. I don’t know what Nao’s problem is, but I… have no reason not to trust everyone here, at least right now… I finish eating my cereal, getting up from my spot at the table, and cleaning the dish. I suppose I should probably head over to the workroom, right?**

**I leave the kitchen, now full and energized, and I make my way down the hall. Again, nobody is in the living room, so I assume they're all just… in the workroom. Jeez, I need to keep up.**

**As soon as I get close to the workroom door, I can hear people talking. Not clearly, but I can make out the sounds of people. Ah, god… it sounds like everyone is in there. I feel a little guilty for taking so long, but I eventually open the door and enter.**

**I don't like having all eyes on me, that’s for sure.**

Tomita: Oh. Hello there, Heikkinen-shi.

Aapo: Yeah, uh… hi. Am I late, or…

Tomita: I mean… not really. I never specified a time to be here, so there technically isn't an early time or late time.

**She looks… kind of guilty. I don't really know why, but it's just that her eyes are filled with this like… weird look.**

Aapo: Ah! Okay! Is everyone else here then?

Hironaka: No. Zenigata-shi isn't here yet. Neither are the twins.

Aapo: Oh, really? 

Nao: Deary, I thought I told you that in the kitchen? How on Earth could you forget so easily?

Aapo: Wait, huh… I’m talking about the twins, I didn’t know that it took so long to cut hair-

Nao: Are you an idiot, dear?

Aapo: Hey, that’s not nice…

Nao: I’m simply asking you a question since apparently, you can barely remember a word I said to you. 

**Think, Aapo! …Yeah, they said that. You're an idiot, really… but why are they bringing it up now? I’m asking about the twins…**

Aapo: I… you said that yeah… I just forgot, sorry… I’ll try not to forget next time. I… wasn’t talking about Zenigata-san though. I was surprised about the twins… sorry again, though… 

**Sae gets up from where he’s sitting and walks over to me.**

Aapo: Oh, uh… hi, S-

Sae: You don't have anything to fucking apologize for. If anything, this dumb fucking bastard of a clown should be the one apologizing. They’re the one who's being a bitch about nothing. 

**That’s certainly… not what I expected.**

Nao: Ah! Finally, the little man is speaking to me directly! What a… joyous occasion. Truly.

TEN: NAO-SAN, DON'T START-

Sae: You called them an idiot for no reason other than you thought they forgot something you said when they didn’t. They might be an idiot, but this time it was completely fucking uncalled for.

**That’s such a… weird way to put it. Yeah, I’m a little dumb sometimes, but I’m not like… an idiot, am I?? I don’t know. I zone out for a minute, and when I come back to reality, Sae and Nao are still at it.**

Sae: You’re a fucking asshole.

Nao: Aha! You're one to talk-

Sae: At least I can admit it, though.

Yuharo: Uh…

**Nao and Sae turn to look at Yuharo, and so do I. What does he want to say to us? Who knows. I’m really curious, though.**

Yuharo: I think that… Nao-san is wrong… and Sae-sama is right… 

**Yuharo pulls Gyo up to his face, and his voice becomes a little bit higher in pitch.**

Yuharo: Yup, yup! I agree with my friend Amai here, Nao-san! You should probably apologize! It seems like the right thing to do… 

Nao: I didn’t ask you or your friend.

Yuharo: Gh… 

Hironaka: Watch what you're saying. Don't be rude to Yuharo-san, because he’s right. 

Nao: I am simply telling him that I didn’t ask, Hironaka-dono.

Tomita: All of you, cut it out. Zenigata-san will be here soon, please refrain from talking to people who are going to make you mad, or I will have to resort to drastic measures to keep the peace.

**Yeah, that seems like a good idea. Talking to people who annoy me would be kinda inconvenient, really… Or just people who are disliked in general. Everyone who was standing around listening to Sae and Nao's fight was now back in their spots.**

**I don’t know who I should talk to or sit next to. I wanna make friends and talk to everyone here, but I just… don’t know how well I can do that. I wanna make sure everyone has a friend because some people look more lonely than others.**

**So I moved over to talk to Sae.**

**I don't talk to him immediately, though. I wait for everyone else to start talking in small groups so that our conversation is masked and isn't the center of everyone's attention.**

**  
**Aapo: Hiya!

Sae: …

Aapo: Uh… did you hear me, Sae-sama?

Sae: Oh, yeah, I did, I’m just thinking.

Aapo: Oh! What are you thinking about?

Sae: None of your business. 

**I mean, I suppose that’s fair, I shouldn’t pry like that. I would apologize, but… I decided to change the topic instead.**

Aapo: Uh… yeah. Let’s just move past that then! Uh… did TEN-san tell you what I asked xem to tell you?

Sae: Huh?

Aapo: Like… about last night.

Sae: Oh. About last night… Yeah, xe fucking told me. Please don't say it again.

Aapo: Ah, but uh… I wanted to thank you in person too! It was really nice of you to do that, so… thank you! It really made my night better.

Sae: Yeah, yeah, Ryou was nice for once, what a fucking surprise. 

**How can he take offense to that… I am really confused.**

Aapo: Uh… I didn't mean it that way…

Sae: I.. understand what you mean, you idiot. I’m just poking fun, I guess. I’m not being serious.

**His tone of voice says otherwise, but I think he might have like… resting bitch face but like… with his voice. Resting bitch voice? I don’t know what it would be called. I smile, though, because if he isn’t being serious, then…**

Aapo: So like… playful teasing? Stuff that friends do?

Sae: …

Aapo: Oh my god, you're kidding.

Aapo: Saemonsaburou-sama, you're joking around with me? You are having a good time and doing friendly stuff with me? It seems like you can actually have fun when you want to!

Sae: Why the actual fuck did you say my full surname like that.

Aapo: Comedic effect, I think? Why not, I guess… 

Sae: Also… of course I can have fun if I want to, you idiot. That’s like… asking something who’s always happy if they are ever sad. It’s dumb, and kind of fucking obvious.

Sae: Stop acting like we're friends. Seriously. You're fucking annoying. You did something nice for me, I did something nice for you. Simple. You don't need to talk to me.

Aapo: What if I want to-

Sae: I don't. I don't want to be your friend, or even be friendly with you. Teasing doesn’t have to be friendly, I don’t think. Stop bothering me. 

**What has gotten into him? He’s so… so mean! I mean… he's kinda rude in general, but like… this is so confusing.**

**I don't know if my expression is what gives it away, or maybe it's something else, but Sae looks even more annoyed.**

Sae: Stop acting like this is shocking to you. I’m an asshole.

Aapo: No you aren't, you’re actually-

Sae: Don’t finish that sentence.

**And so I don't.**

Aapo: Uh… fine, if you don't want to talk to me, I won’t like… make you do that.

Sae: Thank you. Goodbye now.

Aapo: Oh, that goes into effect immediately, huh… 

**Sae doesn't say another word to me. Ouchies. I walk over to a slightly more crowded area of the room, and I end up walking into a… kind of weird conversation.**

Nagai: …and this is why I can barely walk.

Aapo: Huh. Interesting.

Nagai: Oh, hello there, Heikkinen-san. I’m just telling a story real quick if you want to join my… very lovely audience.

Sora: Yep! Junpei-kun ‘n I are quite the audience, aren’t we?

Junpei: Yeah, we are! 

Nagai: Feel free to join them, if you want. I’ll even restart the story if you want me to!

Aapo: Ah, uh… Sure! I guess. Uh… you don't have to repeat the story if you don't want to… I can just have no context. 

Nagai: Oh, it’s not any trouble! I love talking about myself, after all. Please, do sit down if you want to.

**I take a seat next to Junpei and Sora, and Nagai clears his throat. He’s pretty focused as he begins to speak, and honestly… it's really admirable.**

Nagai: It all started when I was born.

Nagai: One fortunate day, I was brought into this marvelous world! Let’s do a little, er… time skip. When I was six, I began to learn how to ice skate, and my gods, I was already amazing at it. 

**Junpei laughs a little.**

Junpei: Watch the ego, buddy.

Nagai: It’s not egotistical if it’s true, Junpei-kun.

Nagai: It started as just me wearing my ice skating shoes when I was younger, and I wouldn’t take them off ever. I would wear my absolutely stunning outfits to school, and I would wear my ice skates no matter what. 

Aapo: Isn’t that like… a possible hazard? Ice skates are pretty sharp…

Nagai: I suppose they could be seen as a potential threat, but I’ve had one of the cleanest records for where I lived, so I guess they didn’t see an issue with it.

Nagai: Anyways. I literally only took these shoes off for showers and sleeping. I learned how to walk in them with ease, even off the ice rink floor. 

Nagai: Well, that’s why I can barely walk without them on. Once you get used to that, it’s hard to really go back, now isn’t it?

Aapo: I… I guess so! 

Sora: No no, I totally getcha. I wear heels like you wear them ice skates there, it’s a pain, believe me.

Aapo: You guys don’t have to wear those shoes if you don’t want to… Now would be the perfect time to practice walking without them! Since we’re going to be… going to be…

**I can’t finish my sentence. I really can’t say it, because it sounds so stupid and unreal to say.**

Junpei: We’re going to be stuck here for a while.

Aapo: Yeah, that…

Junpei: Hey now, don’t look so down. At least we have a lotta people to talk to so that we don’t get bored. Plus, I found out that the computers over there even have a few games installed already! 

Sora: Can’t access the internet though.

Nagai: Yeah, which is worrying! My fans are going to be displeased by my absence. 

Junpei: Wow… what a sad story.

Nagai: It really is!

**Nagai throws a hand over his forehead, throwing his head back and laughing.**

Nagai: Whatever shall I, the magnificent Shoma Nagai, do?

Sora: You think you’re fans are gonna be disappointed. I’m the lead singer in every opera I’m in! They can’t replace me all that easily!

Junpei: I don’t have fans. I do not feel your struggles in the slightest.

**I kind of get it. I just… don’t have fans like they do. Of course, I have them, many people have heard of my works before, but it’s a little different when you participate in a sport or sing in popular, well-known things.**

Aapo: Uh… My fans are usually supportive of any absence I have… I have Äiti run my social media, and she’s always telling me the nice things people say about me and my works… 

Aapo: They understand if I go offline for a little while, I’m just focusing on writing. Uh… 

**That means nobody is going to be looking for me in particular, which… kind of sucks. At least a lot of other people have fans who would worry about their absence. Hopefully, we’re found soon enough.**

**The four of us talk for a little longer about nothing in particular, just whatever comes to mind. I can’t really tell how much time passes because my perception of time is… quite bad, but I can tell it’s definitely been a little bit.**

**Finally, though, after ages of waiting, Zenigata bursts through the door, out of breath.**

Zenigata: DEAR GOD.

Zenigata: You guys could have maybe like… let me know you were going to meet up here?

Tomita: I apologize, I just wanted to let you sleep in after yesterday… 

Zenigata: Could have told me that last night.

Tomita: Again, I apologize. How long are the twins going to take to get here? We should really be starting this meeting now…

Zenigata: This… meeting? 

Tomita: Yes, meeting. To discuss what we found yesterday. We didn’t discuss it yesterday because you all were tired. I apologize for that as well, I should have let you all take breaks.

Zenigata: …

Zenigata: It’s fine. Just… let’s get this meeting or whatever started. 

Tomita: I’d love to, but the twins aren’t here yet. 

Zenigata: Just send someone to go get them. If they’re taking too long, you can always just… drag them here. With help, of course.

Tomita: Uh… there’s no need or that last bit. I suppose sending someone is fine, though… 

Do: No need.

**We all turn to the door, and…**

**There stands Do and Ko, with their hairstyles matching exactly.**

Ko: Hiya-hiya everyone!! Yumi cut my hair for me!! Doesn’t it look amazing?!

Vander: Aww, that’s so cute! Ah, this almost makes me wish I had siblings.

Ko: I cannot WAIT until you all least expect it… and then I’ll steal one of Yumi’s extra kimonos! 

Ko: Then, I’ll get ya! I’ll get ya real good!

Do: …

Do: Okay. Let's just sit down now, we're holding everyone up.

Ko: Ah. Right. Sorry…

**The twins break off and sit down. Ko comes running up to me, waving happily. I wave back before Tomita clears her throat and stands up.**

Tomita: Alright. Now that everyone's here, our makeshift search team is going to let you know what we found.

Tomita: Since I’m already talking, I’ll go first. 

Tomita: I was in the laundry room yesterday, searching around for any means of escape. There wasn't anything of interest, besides the fact that we have working electricity and that our washing machine and dryer work.

Tomita: That being said, we’ll have to do laundry at some point. We’ll talk about it when the time comes.

Tomita: I don’t know how long we’ll have electricity for, though.

Tomita: So. Nothing else of interest. Vander-san, Nao-shi, can you please come up here and present your findings?

**Oh god, we have to present our own findings? I don't really do well with large crowds or public speaking, I pull out my notebook in preparation as Vander and Nao get up and walk to the center of the room.**

Nao: First of all, I’d like to say one thing.

Nao: Bathrooms are completely useless when it comes to escape.

Vander: I can agree with you there! All we really found was hygienic products and stuff. 

Nao: Meaning that they're quite serious about their want to keep up here. 

**God. Yeah, no kidding.**

Vander: There's also hair products and whatnot, and there are showers in there as well! Make sure to take a shower when you can.

Nao: We don't want anyone to be gross.

Tomita: Is that all for you two?

Nao: I think so, Tomita-dono!

Tomita: Great. This means we can move onto our next group. Zenigata-san, Heikkinen-shi, please come up.

**I feel really nervous, but I get up with Zenigata and go to the middle of the room.**

**As soon as Nao and Vander sit down, Zenigata clears her throat.**

Zenigata: There was… not a lot that was useful, in all honesty. 

Zenigata: There was a closet with some lab supplies and whatnot, and then there was… stuff I didn't investigate myself. Heikkinen-san, can you tell them what you found?

**Gh… Okay, breathe. You can do this.**

Aapo: Uh… yeah, I can.

Aapo: I found a clock in there, stuck at… 9:52. There was also a calendar with the date May 19th circled. It might be like… when we were brought here? I don't really know.

Aapo: Some computers worked in there, and uh… there was a window.

Ko: A window? Why didn't you do something like punch it out? Silly Heikkinen-kin!

Aapo: Ah, uh…

**Come on, it’s fine. Quit worrying, ignore it, and move on.**

Aapo: Uh… Well, you see… if I punched it out, I would have fallen to my death.

Hironaka: How so?

Aapo: Uh… From the looks of it, we’re pretty high up. Like… I wouldn't even have a chance of survival if I fell from that high.

Hironaka: I see.

Sae: So basically, we're stuck. So this whole investigation was fucking pointless.

**That's a little blunt.**

Aapo: Not… not pointless, at least we got to know the… the building better. 

Aapo: We… found lab equipment just in case we need it, and… and… 

**I really don't like the fact that we’re stuck here. I don't want to accept it as fact just yet. I wanna go home.**

**Before I know it, I can't even say another word. I’m just staring off into space. Stuck here? Am I going to ever see Äiti again? I wanna go home. I don't want to have to go through this.**

**I look over to Zenigata, hoping she’ll get the hint and take over for me. Luckily, she does. I don't move to sit down, but if she does the talking, I think it'll be easier.**

Zenigata: Yeah, Heikkinen-san is right. It was tiring, but not entirely useless.

Yuharo: I… think it was good… Gyo agrees, too… 

**Zenigata smiles, and it's… really surprising, but their smile is nice.**

Zenigata: Thank you, Yuharo-san. Tell Gyo I said thank you to them too, alright?

Yuharo: Will… do…

Yuharo: Gyo, did you know that… they're thanking you??

**Yuharo’s voice becomes animated and lively, higher pitched.**

Yuharo: Aw, Amai! That’s so nice of them to say!! You're very welcome, whoever you are!!

**Gosh, that's oddly wholesome for a boy that's talking to himself via hand puppet.**

Tomita: Well… I think you two can go sit down now.

**Thank god. I move immediately, closing up my notebook and shoving it into my bag. I sit next to Ko, who is barely paying attention to the meeting, by the looks of it.**

Tomita: So that just means we’ll all have to live together peacefully for the time being.

Tomita: Starting off, I’m going to say that we need some form of order, especially in the dorms.

Tomita: Later today, I want you all to choose an order for room cleaning duty.

Tomita: Assign one person from each room to take the dorm’s laundry to the laundry room.

**I… what? I mean, I guess it makes sense, but like… okay.**

Tomita: Please do so later, though. Thank you.

Tomita: For now, just go… do whatever you want. 

Ko: Alrighty!! Sounds good to me! Bye-bye now, everyone!

**Ko gets up from her spot next to me and rushes out of the room happily.**

Tomita: I’ll be staying here if any of you need me.

Hironaka: I’ll keep that in mind.

**One by one, everyone starts to head out. I can see a few groups of people head off in different directions from where I’m sitting, but otherwise, I’m just… there.**

**I’m still sitting by the time everybody leaves the room, and Tomita looks at me with concern.**

Tomita: Heikkinen-shi, are you doing alright over there?

Aapo: Me? Uh… I’m good, just a little spacey.

Tomita: Uh… could you come here for a minute, since you stayed?

Aapo: Oh? Uh… yeah, I can do that, just gimme a second…

**I get up from where I was sitting and walk over to Tomita.**

Aapo: Uh… what do you need?

Tomita: I wanted to apologize again for overworking you yesterday.

Aapo: You've apologized a few times already, Tomita-san. It’s okay-

Tomita: It quite honestly isn’t. I… have problems when it comes to being in positions of power sometimes. I used to be the lead r… I used to be our lead chemist, and it was always very dangerous. I had to make sure no mess-ups happened.

Tomita: I’m working on it, so… if I ever do that again, you can ignore me completely and take a break anyway.

**I… would feel bad for doing that. Maybe I’m just complacent, or maybe it's like… something else, but… yeah.**

Aapo: Uh… I can't promise I’ll be able to, but I’ll try my best.

Tomita: Your best is enough, thank you. You may go now, I’m going to sit in here just in case.

Aapo: Alright! I’ll talk to you later, Tomita-san!! Please don't overwork yourself too much.

**Tomita smiles and just shakes her head.**

Tomita: I’ll do my best.

**With that, I make my way out of the workroom. I am… so exhausted already.**

**…**

**What should I even do, though? I still have time in the day. I check my tablet for the time, and… it’s only 10:32 AM.**

**God, why did I have to have so much free time?? I kinda just wanna sleep…**

**Whatever. I can't do that, so I might as well go do something. I quickly head past the kitchen and living room and down the dorm hall, entering my dorm.**

**Sae is there. Great. I’m… still kinda sad he doesn't want to be friends, but… I don't even look at him for more than a second, I just head into the closet and look through my clothes.**

**Looking through my wardrobe was kind of sad, considering it only had two outfits plus my nightclothes, but it is what it is. I just decided to get my regular clothes and head out. I’m hoping there are towels in the bathroom.**

Sae: Why the fuck are all your clothes the same like that?

Aapo: Huh??

**I thought he didn't want to talk to me??**

Sae: The same brown… coat thing, the tie and the… jeez, even my clothes are more diverse, and I hate having more than one type of clothing.

Aapo: Uh… I don't know. Just kinda like it.

Aapo: Why are you talking to me again?

Sae: Wouldn't you like to know.

Aapo: Yeah, I kinda do. That's why I'm asking.

Sae: …

Sae: Honestly, fair point.

Sae: I’m just super fucking bored. There's nothing to do around here. It's too fucking early in the morning as well. They don't even have a library here, how am I supposed to learn any new trivia with no library?

Sae: They don't have a garden or anything! There's nothing to fucking do. Christ, if they're gonna keep me here, they better fucking give me actual shit to do!

Sae: Even if I think you're annoying and unbearable, you're like… the only person I can stay around for more than two seconds without dying a little bit inside.

Sae: Actually, you’re not annoying, I don’t think. I just happen to be really fucking annoyed whenever I talk to you. 

Aapo: Uh… Thank you?

**I can get where he’s coming from, in a way. Unlike me, though, he can't just whip open a personal notebook with all the trivia in the world. I mean… I don't do that either, my personal notebook is for poetry and stuff I find here, but…**

Aapo: I mean. I’m a little bored too, which is why I’m going to take a shower.

Sae: A shower. 

Aapo: Yeah, a shower, Sae-sama.

Sae: Well, have fun with that, I guess. 

Aapo: Uh… if you want to-

Sae: Do not say a fucking word.

Aapo: -go do something once I’m done, I’d be happy to.

Sae: Oh.

Sae: Maybe? I don't want to give you the impression that I want to be around you, but you're like… yeah. I guess.

Aapo: Honestly? Tolerable is better than nothing.

Sae: Guess you're right. Go take your shower, I’ll wait here for you. Don't take too fucking long or I’ll let you rot away bored too.

Aapo: Uh… okay man.

Aapo: You do you.

Aapo: I’ll be back as soon as I can be!

Sae: …

Sae: Okay.

**With that, I quickly rush out of the room and head down the halls. I see a few people in the living room, and a few people in the kitchen through the glass, but I ignore them as I go into the men’s bathroom.**

**I’m no man, but it's… way more comfortable like this.**

**There are some mirrors in here, and… dear god, my hair’s a mess. I quickly get into the shower, which is honestly quite big. Especially for a shower.**

**I shower as fast as I can, hopping out and grabbing a towel. Dear god, it's cold. I put on my shirt and pants and quickly comb my hair. It's still messy, but now it's the good kind. It was definitely the bad kind before... Either way, I'm done. Hopefully, that didn't take too long.**

**I rush back down the halls and into the dorm, huffing like a worn-out dog that had been chasing a ball for a little too long.**

Sae: That took a lot less time than I thought it would.

Aapo: Yeah, I meant it when I said I wouldn't take long.

Sae: Your hair is a fucking mess still.

Aapo: Ah, it is? I thought I finally got it to be the good kind of messy.

Sae: I never said it was the bad kind, yeah? It looks fine, but... Jesus fuck, Heikkinen-san, how do you get it to stay like that?

Aapo: Uh… it kinda just does this naturally.

Sae: There is no way in hell that’s natural.

Aapo: I mean… okay. If that's what you wanna believe.

**I drop my dirty clothes in the laundry bin, before closing the closet and looking back to Sae.**

Aapo: Now that that’s out of the way, what do you wanna do?

Sae: I don't fucking know, that's the problem!

Aapo: Well… what do you like to do? We could probably find a way to do something you like…

Sae: …

Sae: Uh… I don't know.

Aapo: You don't know what?

Sae: I don't know what I like.

**That sounds like a total lie.**

Aapo: Yes you do, Sae-sama.

Sae: Wow, someone’s bold today.

Aapo: [Shakes head frantically] No I’m not!!! I’m just pointing out your… very obvious lie.

Sae: …

Sae: I know you can't cook, but do you know how to bake?

**Baking?**

Aapo: Uh… not really. I don't know how to do much of anything besides write.

Sae: Sad.

Sae: Uh… I don't really know if there's anything else we _could_ do here that I like. 

Aapo: I mean, I can try to help you bake!

Aapo: I just might not be any good at it, though.

Sae: I… you seriously don't know how to bake, huh…

Sae: I can teach you if you want.

Aapo: Really? I mean… I…

**I don't know if I want to learn much, but… he seems like he really wants to bake something.**

**[ BAKE WITH SAE? ]**

**[** **_YES_ ** **] | NO**

**Baking seems like it can be fun! Why not? Besides, Sae seems to really wanna do it! He might not want me to be, but I like being here with him when he's not fighting with other people.**

Aapo: Okay! Let's get going, then!

Sae: Wait, really?

Aapo: Uh… yeah. Why wouldn't I? You really wanna do it, so… yeah. I’ll take you up on learning how to bake, it might be a useful skill here just in case you-

**Just in case you die.**

Aapo: Just in case you need help making food for everyone in the morning and at night!

Sae: I…

Sae: Thank you. That's... nice of you.

**Sae gets up immediately after he says that, and exits the room. I scramble to keep up with him, but eventually, I catch up. We look into the kitchen and see that nobodies using it, so… People in the living room can see us, but they're across the hall, so it shouldn't be too much of a bother!**

Sae: Alright! We’re going to need a few things, can you get them for me? 

Sae: I can just do the hard making parts, you can fucking… just get the ingredients and shit.

Aapo: Uh… sounds like a plan! What do we need?

Sae: First off, we’ll need a bowl, a mixer, and probably some like… cake batter. I don't feel like making it all by scratch right now, so hopefully we fucking have some.

Sae: Can you do that for me? I’ll really quickly get the oven ready. 

Aapo: Can do!

**I scuttle over to the cupboards, where I have to nearly jump to get up to them. I can hear Sae giggling a little bit in the background, and even though I’m glad he’s having a good time…**

**THIS IS SO FUCKING IRRITATING. WHO DID THIS.**

Aapo: Motherfucker! DAMN IT, please come down here, cupboard!! Who in the actual hell would put these cupboards up so high?! 

**As I jump to try and reach the cabinet from the ground, I open it and stuff falls out.**

Aapo: GODDAMN IT.

Sae: Woah, somebody learned a new cuss word or two.

**Oh… yeah, I forgot Sae was there. That’s… embarrassing. I turn around to look at Sae, and he looks a little bewildered, even though he's teasing me.**

Aapo: I… don't… I’m sorry, my anger got the better of me, I won't cuss like that again.

Sae: No no. Feel free to go ahead. That was certainly entertaining. Besides, my anger issues are way worse, I can tell if you've gone too far.

**I groaned but smiled a little bit. God, I hate it when designers design places as if short people don't exist.**

Aapo: Glad you're having fun… 

**I climbed up onto the counter like I had done this morning.**

Aapo: …but if I fall from here, I’m going to be… I’m going to call you the bitch word.

Sae: The bitch word.

Aapo: Yeah, that’s right. 

Sae: I…

Sae: This is actually kind of fun. Please continue to be funny. You weren't before, so don't ruin it now.

Aapo: Oh, okay. 

Aapo: You want me to be like a jester?

Sae: [Laughs] Maybe! Do a funny little dance for the king-

Nagai: What on earth are you two doing?

**Oh. I must not have realized that Nagai had come into the kitchen, looking a little shaken. I don't have time to comment on it, though, because Sae beats me to the first response.**

Sae: Why the fuck are you here?

**He doesn’t sound too happy anymore. Frick.**

Nagai: My gods, what is Heikkinen-san doing up on the counter? 

Nagai: They could get very hurt, you know. You shouldn't make them-

Sae: I didn't make them do shit. They did that from their own free fucking will, and they KNEW they could possibly get hurt.

Aapo: Uh… I knew that, I just… couldn't get up to the cupboard.

Nagai: Ah. Shortphobia. I see.

Sae: What the fuck is that even supposed to mean.

Nagai: Yeah.

**I don't think that's really an answer to the question at hand, but okay.**

Aapo: Uh… did you need something? Sae-sama and I were just about to start baking to pass the time, so…

Nagai: What would I have come into the kitchen for, Mx?

Aapo: Mx?

Nagai: Gender-neutral of Mister and Miss. I thought you would know that-

Aapo: Of course I know what Mx. means. Why did you call me it?

Nagai: I don't really know. It just sounded a little funny to me when I said it.

Sae: Haha. So funny. That one's a real knee slapper. I’m laughing so fucking hard right now. I am rolling on the ground from laughter and weeping tears from my eyes.

Nagai: No need to be a dick, my gods…

Aapo: Hey, that’s-

Sae: Cut the shit. God, both of you are so fucking annoying! I’m going to the dorm now, so don't follow me, Heikkinen-san.

**I thought he just said I wasn’t annoying though?? I jumped down immediately from the counter, trying to follow Sae as he walked out.**

Aapo: Wait, come on, Sae-sama!!

Aapo: We were just about to do something fun! Don't let something little get to you-

Sae: Shut the fuck up now. I’ll talk to you later when we decide all of that weird chore bullshit. I don't wanna deal with this egotistical, Shujin Nao part two looking headass.

Aapo: I… okay.

Aapo: I hope you feel better, Sae-sama.

Sae: Okay.

**And then he leaves, leaving Nagai and me in the kitchen with nobody else but each other.**

Nagai: My gods, what on Earth is his problem?

Aapo: Uh…

Nagai: It’s unlike me to get mad, but he’s rather infuriating. 

Aapo: No, he’s fine… He’s just kind of… stressed right now.

Nagai: Not an excuse to be a dick, my dear friend.

Aapo: I…

**Yeah, he’s right.**

Aapo: Fine, yeah. I’m just… I’ve spent a little time with him yesterday and today and I just… wanted to see if I could make him feel better so he could calm down.

Nagai: That's quite sweet of you to do!

Nagai: Especially for someone like him.

Aapo: Hhh, yeah… I guess so.

**Nagai sits down with a bowl of goldfish, so I just… sit down next to him.**

Aapo: I guess I’m just very empathetic? 

Nagai: Kind of, yeah. I haven't exactly known you for too long, but I can tell you're the kind of person that helps others no matter what. 

Nagai: It’s quite admirable! Not as admirable as me, but close enough.

Aapo: Are you seriously inflating your ego right now?

**That kind of ticks me off a little bit… I don't exactly like egotistical people unless they're a nice person, and I KNOW that, but… it seems a little out of place.**

Nagai: My my, I think I can inflate my ego just a little bit, can I not?

Aapo: Uh… you did that earlier. With the story about how you got so used to ice skating and wearing ice skates that it’s weird to walk in normal shoes.

Nagai: Well, yes, but…

Nagai: What if I gave you a little ego boost to balance it out?

**Wait, what? An ego boost? Doesn't that mean like… getting complimented and stuff?**

**Absolutely not. I would die from embarrassment right then and there.**

Aapo: Ahh, no no it's fine!! You don't have to, really…

Nagai: I insist! I believe you need it after all of that with Sae-sama.

Aapo: I…

**I cave in WAY too easily.**

Aapo: Go ahead, I’m curious as to what you wanna say!

Nagai: Alright! Thank you, Heikkinen-san.

Nagai: To start off, your hair is simply magnificent! Your clothing style may be bland, but it matches what you do, so… bonus for the aesthetic fitting together.

Nagai: You overworked yourself to figure out stuff so we could attempt to escape. Rather kind of you, if you ask me, even if it proved to be a little pointless in the end.

Nagai: Finally, you’re putting up with Sae-sama! Not a lot of people here really wish to be around him, I included, so… good on you for making the attempt.

**That’s… very nice. Besides the bland outfit part, that's a little… not nice. Oh, and the pointless thing, that's definitely not nice either. Everything else, though? I… don't really know how to respond to all of that.**

Aapo: Ahh, thank you!!! That's really nice and honestly, I’m-

Nagai: Feeling a lot better? I knew you would! Everything feels just a little better after being complimented, does it not?

Aapo: I… yeah, I have to agree with you on that. I feel a lot better! Thank you so much!

Nagai: Any time, Heikkinen-san! I love being a hype squad for everyone! I have a lot of ego, so like… why not share it with everyone?

**I take back what I thought earlier. It's totally okay for him to have an ego, he DESERVES it.**

Nagai: Anyways, as much as I’d love to talk, I promised Junpei-kun and Sora-san that I would bring them some of these goldfish for our movie night, so…

Nagai: Well, not movie night, more like a movie day. but…

Nagai: Yeah! 

Aapo: Wait… I’m an idiot, I completely forgot that there was a small TV in my dorm.

Nagai: Honestly? So did I, until Junpei-kun pointed it out. We also found out there’s a bunch of movies on the TV stand, so… Sora-san is picking the movie while I get the snacks. 

Nagai: So… I’ll talk to you later, alright?

Aapo: Uh-huh!! Most definitely!

Nagai: Alright. Goodbye now!

**With that, Nagai takes his leave, and a brilliant little plan pops into my head.**

**I quickly get a small bowl and fill it with a bunch of little candies I find around the kitchen, and I even get some popcorn and microwave it real quick.**

**Oh, I am so big-brained. I am so smart, nobody will ever compare to how smart I am right now.**

**I quickly made my way to my dorm, walking in and hearing Sae groan immediately.**

Sae: I thought I told you to stay the fuck away from me for now-

Aapo: Do you wanna watch a movie?

**That seemed to catch him off guard because he looks completely confused.**

Sae: …Huh?

Sae: That’s probably the last thing I expected you to ask. Why do you wanna watch a fucking movie with me? Can we even do that here?

Aapo: Apparently. Nagai-san told me about the fact he was going to watch a movie with some people in his dorm, so… yeah. Do you wanna?

Sae: Go watch it with fucking like… TEN-san or something. You two seem to get along decently enough.

Aapo: Well… since our baking plans got ruined by Nagai-san, I decided that maybe we could just… chill in here and watch a movie together! I don’t think it would do any good to watch it with TEN-san… 

Aapo: It most likely won't be interrupted, and I got some snacks for both of us if we want them!

Aapo: I’ll even let you pick the movie-

**Sae lets out a long, dragged out sigh.**

Sae: Uh… fine. I guess. A movie doesn't sound too bad right about now.

Sae: I still don't get why you're trying so fucking hard to make me feel like… better about all this, but thanks for the effort. 

Sae: Uh… I’ll look through the movies real quick.

Aapo: Alright. Take your time! It's only…

**I check my tablet for the time.**

Aapo: Around twelve o'clock! 

Aapo: We have all of the time in the world! 

Sae: Yeah, unfortunately.

Aapo: Uh… okay. 

**I grab a blanket from my bed, and I set up a little spot for myself on the floor. I don’t think Sae would appreciate me grabbing stuff off of his bed, so he can just get his own blanket after he picks out a movie.**

**As soon as I finish setting up a little comfortable spot, I hear Sae burst into laughter. That’s immediately concerning, because Sae doesn’t laugh like that, and I haven’t ever heard him laugh like that before, but he turns to face me with a small smile on his face.**

Sae: Say, have you ever heard of the Lorax?

Aapo: Uh… no, I don’t think I have.

Aapo: Is it bad?

Sae: Oh you poor, innocent soul. Come on, let’s watch this one.

Aapo: What do you mean innocent soul?? Is it really bad??

Sae: You really… okay, idiot, listen up.

Sae: This movie is so awful. It is most likely the worst thing to plague this earth besides me. 

Aapo: Y-

Sae: Don’t say anything.

Aapo: … 

Sae: Okay! Good. We are going to criticize this whole movie, alright? 

**Sae turns on the TV, popping in the DVD and grabbing a blanket off his bed, curling up next to me. He looks marginally happier than he did before, and as long as Nao didn’t walk in, this could end up being successful!**

**The TV screen flicks onto a menu, and Sae has to get up for a minute to press a button on the TV. Jeez, this thing seems a little old…**

**After a second, though, the screen flicks again and the movie starts.**

**Oh god.**

**As the movie plays, all I can think of is just… why. I’m barely understanding the plot at all, and all of the characters look just… bland. The only one I can really say looks decent is the Lorax, because he looks like a friend. Kinda like a stuffed animal? I don’t know.**

**There’s also this twink, but like… that’s beside the point.**

Sae: So.

Sae: How are you enjoying the movie so far?

Aapo: I don’t understand a thing that’s going on. 

Sae: Yeah, me neither, I just wanted to make fun of the movie. It really isn’t any good.

Sae: Do you want to know some facts about the movie? It’ll keep you occupied until the one decent part.

**The one decent part? I… don’t understand how any part of this movie could be decent. I just nod my head and unwrap a piece of candy I brought in, popping it into my mouth. Sae does the same, so I take this time to ask a question.**

Aapo: Uh… Sae-sama, I thought you said you didn’t want to teach people trivia a few days ago?

Sae: Well, I did, yeah, but… Fucking hell, it’s just an impulse thing I do sometimes. I mean, you don’t seem like you’re going to tell people this shit, and we definitely aren’t going to be holding any shows around here, so…

Sae: I think it’s fine.

Aapo: Well, if you want to, go ahead! I’m all ears.

Sae: Did you know that the Lorax was the first Dr. Seuss animated film to be rated PG by the MPAA?

Aapo: No, I didn’t! That’s so cool!

Sae: The characters Ted and Aubrey were also named after Dr. Seuss and his second wife, which is… yeah.

Aapo: They named those… bland characters off of real people?

Sae: Unfortunately, yeah. I could tell you more, but… the best part is about to come on. Look at the screen, Heikkinen-san. You’ll know which part is the best when it comes on.

Aapo: Ah, okay!

**I turn back to the screen, seeing the twink sitting in his house again. That was the best part? I give Sae a confused look before he shakes his head and points back at the screen. Guess I’m gonna have to pay full attention to this.**

**…**

**Why is the twink singing?**

**This has to be the part that Sae was talking about, there’s no way it isn’t. So I just… watch as the twink sings about… chopping down trees and whatnot. I’m not exactly following the story at all here.**

**There’s a costume switch, which is confusing. I mean, the green suit looks cool and all, it’s just… this is actually pretty decent sounding, compared to the rest of the movie.**

**The song ends, and the movie continues.**

Aapo: That was the part you were talking about, right?

Sae: Yes it was, you fucking idiot. I thought that would be obvious.

Aapo: Uh, it was! I just wanted to… you know… make sure.

Sae: Alright. What did you think? It’s the only good part of the movie, so I hope it was like… fine for you.

Aapo: Yeah, it was okay. Kind of like… really out of place, given the fact that the song is really good, but…

Sae: Yeah. I get that completely, it’s like… yeah. The rest of the movie is kind of boring, but I mean… you wanted to watch a movie, so we’re both going to suffer through the rest of it. 

Aapo: Sounds like a plan, just make sure to not hog any of the candy or snacks. I wanna at least have something while watching this.

Sae: Fair.

**I put my hand into the bag of popcorn, and pop it into my mouth. God, I miss eating popcorn and watching movies. I used to do that with** **Äiti a lot, but I mean… doing this with Sae just as fun. He’s even telling me cool things! I’m learning things and having a fun time making fun of a bad movie.**

**It’s a really boring movie, though, and at some point, we both fall into silence. It’s probably a little awkward for him, but for me? Silence is really the best sometimes. Although I feel very tired as time goes on, it’s still nice.**

**…**

**It wouldn’t be bad to take a nap while watching a movie, right?**

**I don’t really have much time to think about it, because before long, I feel myself falling asleep.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**When I wake up, I’m still on the floor. God, why did I pass out that easily? I groan, putting a hand to my head as I look around the room. Sae isn’t here, and neither is the bag of popcorn or the candies. God, how long was I out for? I grab my tablet to check the time, and it says…**

**6:39 PM.**

**I really slept for almost five whole hours, didn’t I? Jeez, that means that everyone should probably be in the kitchen since it’s around dinner time. I put my blanket neatly back on my bed, and then I head out. I can already see everyone through the glass, and I enter.**

TEN: GOOD MORNING, SLEEPYHEAD!

Sae: Oh my fucking god.

Aapo: Huh??

Sae: I thought I told you not to fucking talk about that…

TEN: NEVER MIND HIM, HEIKKINEN-SAN! GLAD YOU'RE AWAKE NOW!! HURRY UP AND GET SOMETHING TO EAT.

Aapo: Oh! Okay! I’ll be over in a second!

**I head over to the counter and realize that nobody made dinner tonight. I just decided to crush up some ramen and put it in the microwave, because I’m honestly too tired to try and cook. Even if I did, I wouldn’t want the entire place to burn down because I’m an idiot.**

**After I finish microwaving it, I go to sit down next to Mihara. Hara is also there, and I realize that Sae moved all the way across the table to talk to Hironaka.**

TEN: WELCOME BACK, HEIKKINEN-SAN!

Aapo: Ahh, thank you!!

Tetsuya: Were you really just asleep on the floor in your room?

Aapo: Huh?? How do you know about that?

Tetsuya: TEN-san was telling me about how he walked in and saw both you and Sae-sama sitting on the floor in front of the TV. 

TEN: HAHA, YEAH! SAE-SAMA WAS SUPPOSED TO BE MAKING DINNER FOR ALL OF US TONIGHT, AND I WENT TO GO SEE WHAT WAS TAKING HIM SO LONG.

Aapo: Ahh, sorry… The movie was my idea, so that’s on me…

Mihara: NO NO YOU'RE FINE, HEIKKINEN-SAN! WE ALL HAVE FOOD EITHER WAY, AND I CAN EVEN TEASE SAE-SAMA ABOUT IT! YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG.

Tetsuya: Sae-sama was so embarrassed about it. I almost felt bad for him.

**Ahh… I don’t want them teasing him over it, that’s not nice. Even if he’s a meanie, people don’t have to be mean back to him. I also would feel… really bad if they did.**

Aapo: Uh… could you guys not tease him over it? Please?

Tetsuya: Huh? Why not? 

TEN: YEAH, IT'S NOT SERIOUS. I DON'T EVEN THINK HE'S SERIOUSLY ANNOYED ABOUT IT EITHER, SO...

Aapo: Just… please don’t? I feel really bad about people teasing him for something I asked him to do, so… 

TEN: OH, ALRIGHT! SORRY ABOUT THAT THEN!

TEN: HONESTLY? IT'S KINDA SURPRISING YOUCAN EVEN BE AROUND HIM FOR MORE THAN FIVE SECONDS, HEIKKINEN-SAN!

Tetsuya: Yeah, honestly. I can't even do that, haha! It’s… really a talent. Like an… Ultimate Mean Person Wrangler. Ultimate Bitch Tamer. I don’t know, it just seems like a talent on its own.

Aapo: Uh… not really? It’s easy as long as like… he isn’t annoyed. 

TEN: WHICH IS WHEN? LIKE... NEVER?

Aapo: Uh… 

Tetsuya: Seriously, he looks like he’s going to pop a blood vessel at any given moment. It’s concerning, really. 

Aapo: Uh… exactly. So can we like… _please_ stop talking about him for right now? That’s not nice… Show concern in another way like… actually talking to him about it. Just don’t be mean… 

TEN: OH. YEAH. SORRY ABOUT THAT.

**Well, I found it funny either way, just not in the way they found it funny. It sounds like something I would. After writing all day, I would take a nap and accidentally sleep through dinner time.**

**I listen to the two of them talk while I’m eating, too tired to really participate in the conversation. Their words aren’t exactly making sense in my brain, so I attempt to block them out so I can focus more on eating. Thankfully, I managed decently.**

**I got up from where I was sitting, moving over to the sink, and washing out my bowl. I hate how normal this feels, even though it’s not normal… It really only took me a few days to get into some kind of routine, and I… don’t like it. Whatever, I can just sleep it off.**

**I waved to everyone who was left in the kitchen, before making my way down the hallway. I see a few people like Do and Sora heading in their dorms as well. I don’t try to strike up a conversation with them, because I’m way too tired for this, and I enter my dorm.**

**As soon as I enter, something feels… off.**

**I keep the door open for a second, just in case I need to make a run for it. I set my bag down in my bed so that it’s easier to run if needed. I look around the room, and even though I don’t see anything out of the ordinary. I sigh. Maybe I was just overreacting, honestly.**

**I open the door to my closet, and…**

???: BOO!

**I let out a scream as I stumbled back away. What the fuck was that?! I look back to the closet once I’ve gained my bearings and… it’s Ko, and she’s laughing her ass off.**

Ko: Heikkinen-kun!! You shoulda… you should have seen the look on your face!

Ko: I sooo got you!!

Aapo: I… yeah, Ko-chan, you did… How did you get in here? You aren’t supposed to be here, especially not in my closet… 

Ko: Well… that’s a secret! …You left the door open when you went to go to dinner.

Aapo: Oh… I need to be more careful then…

Ko: No! Don’t be more careful!! I can’t sneak up on you and scare you if you do!!

Aapo: Well, uh… considering the situation, I need to be a little more careful. You can scare me other ways, you know!!

Ko: I can??

Aapo: Uh, yeah!!! You can sneak up on me while I eat, or you can scare me while I’m still tired or whatnot. 

Ko: Oh!! Okay!! That makes sense!!!

Aapo: Yeah, uh… please don’t come into my door unless you’re invited in by one of us?

Ko: Us???? 

Aapo: The people listed outside the dorm??

Ko: Oh!! Okay!! Should I go now??

Aapo: Yeah, probably. I was planning on going to sleep, not getting the shit scared out of me because a little girl popped out of my closet.

Aapo: …You did get me pretty good, though.

Aapo: Just like… not in my room next time??

Ko: Yeah yeah! I can do that!! Don’t you worry ‘bout a thing, Heikkinen-kun!!!

Ko: I know when I need to stop, don’t worry!! I’ll be going to my room now, I’ll talk to you tomorrow!!!

Aapo: Uh-huh. I’ll talk to you later, 

**With that, Ko leaves the room. I’m not gonna lie, I’m really annoyed that she would just sneak into my room like that, especially since it was for a scare, but as long as she doesn’t do it again, I think I’ll be fine.**

**I sigh and curl up in my bed. I don’t even bother to change, I’m just… worn out. I literally just woke up from sleeping not that long ago, but… god, I’m just exhausted. I close my eyes, and I hope that I can fall asleep. My eyes shoot open, and I realize that…**

**Sadly, I can’t go to bed now. Why? Because everyone else just walked in. God, I can’t do this right now. I just close my eyes in hopes that I’ll fall asleep. I can hear them talking, and… surprisingly, Nao and Sae aren’t fighting. That’s really good, I’m super happy about that, but I’m too tired to praise them for that.**

TEN: OH, HEIKKINEN-SAN'S SLEEPING! SHOULD WE WAKE THEM UP?? WE KINDA NEED TO TALK ABOUT THE STUFF TOMITA-SAN TOLD US TO...…

Sa: They're going to wake up anyway if you keep yelling...

TEN: SORRY! I DON'T HAVE AN INSIDE VOICE. 

**Oh, yeah. We do kinda need to do that. It’s too late to just… conveniently wake up now, so I move a little and continue to pretend to sleep.**

Nao: I suppose we should, either way. Uh… deary me, they look so comfortable though. I don’t really want to. Can one of you two do it?

Sae: Just because you aren’t technically an asshole now, doesn’t mean I’m not gonna call you a fucking idiot. Seriously? Just wake them up, it isn’t that hard, god.

Nao: My, my… 

Sae: Actually, I’ll just do it real quick. Watch and learn, bitches.

**I hear Sae’s footsteps approach my bed, and I do my best to remain calm and not tense. God, I hope I don’t blow my cover. I’d have to explain myself, and I don't want to have to do that right now. I brace myself, and hopefully, he doesn't shake me too hard trying to wake me up.**

**Surprisingly, he… doesn't shake hard at all.**

Sae: Wake up, Heikkinen-san. 

**I groan.**

Aapo: Uh-uh… I don’ wanna…

Sae: Get up. We have to discuss stupid shit from earlier.

Aapo: Hhhhhhh… give me a few more minutes…

**Sae shakes a little harder this time but still doesn't hurt me.**

Sae: Get up, now.

Aapo: Okay, okay… fine…

**I yawn and stretch my arms, in an attempt to look more convincing. I don't know if Mihara or Nao is buying it, but it seems like Sae is. I rub my eyes before opening them slowly.**

Aapo: What did we need to discuss…? Can you make it quick, please, I’m tired… 

Sae: About the laundry. 

Aapo: Oh, yeah…

**Nao and TEN walked closer, and I looked down a little bit.**

Aapo: How are we gonna do this? 

TEN: I WAS THINKING OF ASSIGNING JUST ONE PERSON TO DO ALL THE LAUNDRY! THAT'S WHAT TOMITA-SAN SUGGESTED, AFTER ALL...

Aapo: That… doesn't seem really fair to the person who has to do it, though.

Nao: I propose a different way of doing it, then.

Sae: You do. Great.

Nao: Ah ah, don't be like that now, Sae-dono! No need to-

Sae: Just because we’re trying to get along doesn’t mean I have to be nice all the time. I can be sarcastic.

Aapo: Guys, please don't start…

Sae: …

Sae: Fine. Sorry.

Nao: It's fine-

Sae: Wasn't apologizing to you, but yeah. It's all good.

Aapo: Anyways…

Aapo: Nao-san, what was your idea?

Nao: Alright.

Nao: We’ll just… have a set order! We’ll rotate each time so that everybody has to do the laundry!

**I still can't believe we have to discuss this type of thing when we’ve literally been kidnapped. Really, it’s annoying, and it feels too much like having a roommate. Wait... that's because they literally are my roommates. I'm stupid.**

TEN: THAT SOUND'S REALLY GOOD, ACTUALLY!

Sae: I’m fine with whatever, I don't really fucking care.

Aapo: Oh! Uh… yeah, I’m fine with that.

Sae: Now it's just a matter of the order.

Nao: Ah, I have an idea for that as well!

Nao: I am going to do this most wondrous thing that always helps me when I need to pick an order!

Nao: You have most likely not heard of it before, but I assure you it will be very fair!

Aapo: Alright!! Show us! 

Nao: Alright.

Nao: Eeny, meeny, miny, mo.

**With each word, Nao points to all of us, going in a circle. How did they even manage to think we didn't know this?**

Nao: Catch a tiger by the toe, if he hollers let him go, eeny, meeny, miny, mo!

**His finger lands on me. I laugh and smile.**

Aapo: Guess that means I’m going first?

Nao: Yes indeed, darling! I do hope you don't mind.

Aapo: Ah, I don't mind at all!

Nao: Good.

**Nao does the same thing two more times, to get the rest of the order. The order goes to me, then Mihara, then Nao, and then Sae.**

Nao: Ah! There we have it, dears! Hopefully, Tomita-dono won't mind us doing it differently.

Aapo: I’m sure she won't! She’s probably going to think it's smarter and a little fairer, because, well… it is.

TEN: YEAH! I'M REALLY TIRED, WE SHOULD GO TO BED.

Sae: Thank fucking god, too. I’m exhausted from today.

**I look down slightly so that I feel less guilty about that. Man, I hope I didn't wear him out that much…**

Nao: Yes! I, too, am tired! I am going to go change real quick. 

**Nao goes into the closet to change, then Mihara, then Sae. and finally me.**

**I curl up into my bed again, this time a lot more comfortable. Jeez, tonight has gone by pretty well.**

Nao: Goodnight, dears! I’ll talk to you all in the morning!

TEN: GOODNIGHT TO YOU TOO! GOODNIGHT, YOU THREE!!

Sae: Night.

**Should I be extra? I’m going to be extra.**

Aapo: Goodnight, Sae-sama! I hope you sleep well. Goodnight to you too, Nao-san! I hope your dreams are sweet. Nighty night, TEN-san!! You deserve to rest.

TEN: Aw, thank you…

**Xe yawns, and for once they aren't yelling.**

Nao: How sweet of you, darling!

**They are the next to go to bed. I don't get anything out of Sae, but I don't mind all too much. I turn onto my side and close my eyes.**

**Today has been… slightly less eventful, although I’m getting to know more people here. Sucks that we all have to be in this situation together, but they all seem like nice people! Even Sae.**

**Today feels like it went a little too well, though. I don't know why, but I just… have this gut feeling that tomorrow is going to end up worse than today. That's stupid, though. I thought like this the first day we got here, too, so it might just be me reacting negatively to the situation.**

Sae: Have a good night, Heikkinen-san.

**Huh?**

**Does he think I’m asleep or something? I don't know, but it's really nice to hear that from Sae. I smile slightly but sit there for a few minutes before finally responding.**

Aapo: … 

Aapo: Night.

**I hear Sae make a small noise of surprise, and I laugh a little bit. After that, though… I drift off into sleep easily. Hopefully, my gut is wrong, I like this feeling of niceness.**

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**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Author here! There are a few things I wanted to talk about now that I'm updating again.  
> 1: I changed the formatting! Hopefully, it should be easier to read.  
> 2: Chapters are now longer! I was re-reading the older chapters and realized they were a bit rushed-looking so hopefully, that'll be fixed now.  
> 3: After I post 1-3, I'm going to try and work on re-writing the first few chapters, and making better artwork for each chapter art now! I recently finished the chapter 3 art and realized it was a massive jump in quality than my older art.  
> 4: I have a discord for this fangan! Mainly for organizational purposes, but there's some stuff for discussion, content, etc etc. https://discord.gg/BGkHqr9  
> 5: I plan for chapter 1-3 to have the motive drop, so hopefully things can pick up speed soon enough  
> That's it for now! Feel free to tell me if this change is better or worse than before, I want Below Zero to be the best it can be.


	7. Chapter 1 [1-3]: It's Looking Up or Looking Down

???: Heikkinen-san.

**Hhhhnnn… is it morning already?? I groan and turn back over, yawning. Too early…**

???: Heikkinen-san, wake up. Now.

**Five more minutes, please… after another light shake, though, I open my eyes a little. What do I see? Sae, staring me right in the face. Jeez, have these people heard of personal space?**

**Now I'm sounding like Sae. Yikeies.**

Aapo: [Yawning] Huh…? Is it morning already?

Sae: Yeah. It is. It's actually very early in the morning. Like… really fucking early.

Aapo: Huh???

Sae: It's like… six o’clock right now. 

**Why did you wake me up then? I don’t see anybody besides you and I awake.**

Aapo: I… Yeah, that’s very early… is everything okay? I’m a little worried now… 

Sae: Why the fuck is your go-to question “Is everything okay?” Of course everything’s fine.

Aapo: Then why did you wake me up? Is anyone else awake yet? Because it doesn’t really seem like they are. 

Sae: I mean, I sure fucking hope not. 

Sae: I just wanted to see if you wanted to help me make breakfast for everyone.

**I can’t really cook, though… Besides, I’m still tired, why would I help out if I was tired AND couldn’t cook? Why is he even asking me to begin with? God, I’m… it’s too early.**

Aapo: I… can’t cook.

Aapo: I told you this already, I think… I literally told you this yesterday. Did you forget or something??

Sae: I- 

Sae: Well… It’s a good time to learn, you know. We really need more than one person on cooking duty anyways, because I’m not gonna fucking cook for everyone all the time.

Sae: Besides, yesterday you said you wanted to learn how to bake to help me in the morning and at night, so if I teach you to cook instead, you’ll be more helpful.

**Oh, yeah. I did say that, didn’t I? I’m an idiot, I shouldn’t say things like that just because I want to make people feel better. Then again, I wasn’t exactly lying, just… didn’t expect Sae to actually take me up on that.**

Aapo: Ah, well… 

Sae: I had to watch Nagai-san dip a cold fucking hotdog in applesauce yesterday. If I ever have to see that happen again while I’m here, I am going to LOSE IT.

Sae: Please help me make food for everyone, I might as well be fucking begging at this point. I mean like… you don’t have to? I guess? I’m still in like… major need of help.

**That genuinely sounds disgusting. I can’t cook, but at least I’m not doing whatever the hell Nagai did. I’m really tired, and I want to stay in bed as long as I can. Cooking is probably a good skill to learn, though, so…**

**Besides, I don’t wanna have to make Sae beg for me to help him, that’s too mean.**

Aapo: Fine, I’ll do it… Just let me ask one more question.

Sae: Hurry the fuck up, then. We need to be done by… around seven-thirty? About? That’s when everyone’s gonna be waking up, I think.

Sae: What’s your question?

Aapo: Well, uh… why me? Couldn’t you have asked someone like Tomita-san or Hironaka-san to help you? I’m sure that they’d be better cooks than I am.

Sae: Tomita-san is too power-hungry, she’ll just tell me what to do the entire fucking time. Hironaka-san is… almost bearable, but he keeps trying to psychoanalyze me. It’s fucking weird, really.

Sae: Nobody else here is responsible enough, besides Do-san, but she’s way too… you know. Not good at making conversation.

Sae: You’re bearable, unlike most other people here. So hurry up so that we can get this shit done with. I wanna eat and go to bed.

Aapo: Have you not gone to bed yet?

Sae: …

Sae: Irrelevant. 

Aapo: Uh… Okay. [Gets up] Let’s go.

Sae: You aren’t going to change?

Aapo: I’ll just change later, it’s fine. We need to hurry up, as you said.

Sae: …

Sae: Alright.

**Sae leaves the room, and I desperately try to catch up. What the heck, he even walks angrily. How do you walk angrily? I don’t think that is possible at all, but Sae manages to do it. He’s also… he’s walking really funny. How did I not notice this before? He’s limping! Once I catch up with him, I motion for him to stop.**

Sae: ??? We don’t have all day, Heikkinen-san. What is it?

Aapo: Do you need help walking?? 

Sae: Gh- no, I don’t.

Aapo: Are you sure? You’re walking kinda funny… I can just hold you on my shoulder and help you if you need it

Sae: I just walk like that, I don’t need help. At all. Don’t touch me, either, I don’t need help. Let’s just go.

**And that’s the end of that.**

**As we pass the living room, I see that nobody else is awake. I honestly wouldn’t mind if they were, but… kind of regretting not putting on my normal clothes. I’m gonna end up falling asleep.**

**Entering the kitchen, I realize that… I really don’t like how this place feels in the morning. Especially this early. It gives off this… eerie vibe to it. God, why am I so afraid of being in here?**

**Sae flicks on the light, and it becomes slightly more bearable to be in here. Now that I can confirm that nobody else besides us is around.**

**God, now that I’m able to actually see and pay attention to everything, I realize Sae is still in his regular clothes. Unless he changed quickly before waking up, he’s been in that outfit for… days now, actually. That’s kind of not good…**

Sae: Alright. I’m feeling super fucking lazy, so we're just making eggs and bacon. If they don’t want it, they can go fuck themselves.

Aapo: Uh… nice. 

**I don't know if now would be an appropriate time to mention that, though. I’ll try to bring it up later.**

Sae: …Are you just gonna stand there?

**Sae was now right next to the stove, and I skittered over to him. I need to do my best to make sure I don't get on his nerves…**

Aapo: Ah, sorry! What did you need me to do?

Sae: Go get some stuff for me, if you will.

Aapo: Yeah! What do you need?

Sae: Well, we need a pan, first of all, along with some butter.

Sae: I’ll tell you what I need next if you manage to get all of that.

Aapo: [Laughs] Hey!!! You better watch it, I’m tired and I’m feisty. I’m gonna be a real meanie if you don’t watch yourself, Sae-san!

Sae: I…

Sae: You keep telling yourself that, my dude. I think it’s literally impossible for you to be an asshole intentionally. 

Aapo: No it’s not! I can be mean if I want to be!!

Aapo: …I just don’t want to be.

Sae: You’re just proving my point, Heikkinen-san. Can you hurry and get the stuff for me, or am I gonna have to do it myself?

**Frick, I was supposed to be getting that. Alright, let’s go. I don’t reply to Sae verbally, but I quickly move to grab a pan. I move to the fridge, and I grab a stick of butter. Hopefully, this is enough, I don’t know how much he needs.**

**I bring the two over to Sae, holding them out.**

Aapo: Uh… this good? 

Sae: Yeah, it’s fine. [Takes the pan and butter] Can you go get me a butter knife? I can’t exactly use a whole fucking stick of butter…

Aapo: Sorry… didn’t know that.

Sae: It’s fine, quit apologizing so much. 

Aapo: Sorry, it’s just-

Sae: I said to quit apologizing, there’s no need to. If you needed to apologize for some stupid shit, I’d tell you straight up.

Aapo: …

Aapo: Okay.

**It’s so hard to not apologize, but I manage to stop myself for as long as I need. I head over to one of the drawers and grab a butter knife for Sae. I really don’t understand why he would need it, but hopefully, I’m like… being really helpful.**

**I hold the butter knife out for him, and he takes it.**

Sae: Thank you.

Aapo: Uh-huh!! No problem!!

Aapo: Uh… don’t you need like… actual eggs to make eggs? I don’t really know how cooking works, but… yeah.

Sae: Did you…

Sae: Did you seriously just ask me if I needed eggs to make eggs? 

Aapo: No! I just… worded that weirdly, sorry… 

Aapo: Just meant like. We don’t have the eggs out, so… what’s up with that. 

Sae: Oh…

Sae: I forgot to tell you to get the eggs, didn’t I.

Aapo: Yeah, you forgot to tell me to get the eggs. Possibly the bacon too. You said you were also making bacon for everyone, yeah?

Sae: I… I did. Oh god, I’m a fucking idiot, sorry about that. Go get the eggs and bacon, please. We need eighteen eggs and a whole lot more bacon for everyone.

**Christ, it sounds like we’re preparing a gosh darn feast. I mean… we actually kind of are, eighteen people is a whole lot to feed. Either way, I nod my head and skitter over to the fridge again.**

**Eggs are supposed to be in the fridge, right? I’m hoping that’s not just a thing my family does.**

**Thankfully, it’s not just a family thing, and I’m not making a fool out of myself. We need eighteen, yeah? If I remember correctly, there are twelve in each container, so… I just grab two of these… egg containers… and put them on the counter next to the stove. Sae isn’t there, but he quickly comes back.**

Sae: Thank you.

Aapo: Uh… what did you leave for?

Sae: To get the bacon, obviously. I didn't want to waste time, so getting both foods at the same time saves us a bit.

Aapo: Ah! Okay! That… makes sense, I think. Not a lot of things make sense to me, though…

Sae: I can see that. Just… alright, I’m gonna start cooking now. Have fun doing whatever you want while I do all the hard work.

**Uh… does he feel like he's doing the hard work? I don’t wanna make him feel like that!!**

Aapo: If you want to, you can just like… show me how to make the eggs, so that you can focus on making the bacon instead!

Aapo: Saves time, right?

Sae: Uh… are you sure about that? I’d have to do like. Two eggs anyways to make sure you get it right.

Sae: If you caught any of these on fire, I’d fucking scream.

Aapo: Uh… I’m sure!!! Besides, I should do some of the work, too, you know? 

Sae: I suppose so. Just… watch and learn, I guess.

**I nod, and I move over to Sae’s side so that it's easier to see what he’s doing.**

Sae: Okay, since we already put butter on the pan, it'll be a bit easier to do all of this. Can you get me an egg out of one of those cartons?

Aapo: Oh, it’s called a carton? 

Sae: …

Sae: Moving on.

**Ouch, sorry… I take out one of the eggs for Sae, handing it to him.**

Sae: So, what you need to do is crack the egg slightly on the side of the pan. Not too hard, because then it’ll get egg all over the place. Make sure not to get any eggshells in the pan.

**Sae cracks the egg, and then lifts his hands over the pan, pulling it apart.**

Sae: Don’t open it up too high either, or else the egg will take up a lot of the pan. Not good at all.

Sae: Wait, fuck… can you go get a spatula? We’re gonna need it soon.

Aapo: Uh-huh! 

Sae: Thanks.

**I skitter over to the drawer again, rummaging through it until I found a spatula.**

Aapo: [Yelling] THIS GOOD?

Sae: Fucking hell, Heikkinen-san! Quiet down.

Aapo: Sorry…

Sae: Whatever. Just try not to wake anyone up by being loud, if I had to deal with anyone other than you right now I’d lose my mind.

Aapo: Am I supposed to take that as a compliment, or…?

Sae: …

Sae: Just give me the fucking spatula before I’m unable to tolerate you.

**I hand over the spatula. I look inside the pan, and… gosh, it looks really weird when it's cooking. It smells really nice, though.**

**Sae then lightly pushes the spatula underneath the egg and flips it over.**

**I am beyond amazed.**

Aapo: Woah!! That's so cool, Sae-sama!! 

Sae: …I just flipped an egg over, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: It was cool, though!!!

Aapo: I’ve never seen that happen before!!

Sae: That's really fucking sad, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: I guess so?? Äiti just… never let me watch her cook. Said I needed to be writing whenever I could. 

Aapo: Just writer things.

**Sae gives me a really, really weird look.**

Sae: …I see. 

Sae: Well, do you wanna try it? Or do you want me to demonstrate again?

**I think I got all of that down decently enough. I mean, at least I hope so, because I’m gonna try to do it.**

Aapo: I think I'm good!! 

Sae: Alright. Go get plates for everyone so I can actually like. Use the pan for another egg.

**I don't reply verbally, and I just get all the plates that we need and set them all neatly in a line on the counter.**

Sae: Thank you.

Aapo: No problem, Sae-sama!

Sae: So then you just fucking… do this.

**He grabs the spatula and slides it under the egg, before placing it on the plate closest to him.**

Aapo: Woah… that's so cool…

**I probably sound like a five-year-old at this point, but I stopped caring a while ago.**

Sae: Glad you find this ridiculously annoying task fun.

Sae: Cooking is so fucking boring, in all honesty. I wish I could just bake for everyone, but fuck, man. You can't eat cakes for breakfast every day. 

Aapo: I mean… nobody is technically stopping us. Technically. We can go buck wild.

Aapo: The little fox hasn't talked to us in days either, so she can't stop us with her weird poison teeth now. 

Aapo: Let’s make a cake for everyone one day! As a treat.

Sae: …

Sae: Okay. Sounds fun, I guess. I’m in.

Aapo: Wait, really? You wanna hang out with me and bake and stuff? 

Sae: HUH.

Sae: I never said I wanted to hang out with you, I just like baking.

Sae: Again, we aren't friends. We don't hang out, we just do necessary tasks together.

**Watching a movie wasn't a necessary task, I think, but I don't say it out loud.**

Aapo: Oh, okay.

Sae: Anyways, let’s just hurry up and fucking fix everybody's food. You can do the rest of the eggs, right?

Aapo: I think so, yeah…

Sae: You think so? That's not reassuring in the slightest, but okay. As long as you don't burn them to a literal fucking crisp, I think you'll be fine.

Aapo: I think I can manage. It's gonna be a little cramped, though… after all, we're gonna be using the same stove…

Sae: We’ll be fine. Try not to bump into me or touch me, and hopefully, this goes decently.

**Okay.**

**I take an egg out of the carton, and… I try to crack it open, but I accidentally hit it a little too lightly. Gosh, why am I so bad at this already?**

**I don't wanna disappoint Sae though, so I hit a little harder. I can't give up just yet.**

**The egg eventually cracks a little bit, and I open it over the pan, perhaps a little bit too high. It looks weird, unlike Sae’s perfect one.**

**It’ll have to do.**

**How long should I wait before I flip it? I don't know, and I wasn't counting the exact amount of seconds and minutes Sae waited.**

**I decided that waiting a few minutes was good enough, and then I flip it over. It actually… looks kind of decent.**

**I glance over to Sae, who is fixated on making the bacon. I smile a little bit.**

Aapo: Hey, Sae-sama!!

Sae: [Snapping out of it] Huh? Yeah, what do you want? Did you fucking burn the egg?

Aapo: No, actually!! I did the opposite, look!

**Sae inspects the egg in my pan and smiles. I hope that means he thinks I did okay!! I worked really hard to make this.**

Aapo: Uh… how’d I do?

Sae: It's a little overcooked, but not exactly burnt. Good job.

Aapo: Good job? I did a good job?

Sae: Uh. Yeah. I wouldn't have said so if you didn't. Don't make me say it again.

Aapo: Sorry!! I just… was really worried about doing it right, you know?

Sae: Kind of?? Never had this kind of problem before.

Aapo: How??? Did you like… come straight out of the womb knowing how to cook?

Sae: What? No. 

Sae: I just learned at a super young age, so like… it feels like I’ve never learned anything basic in ages.

Aapo: Oh… okay.

**I put the egg onto the next plate, before putting it on Sae’s side of the counter.**

Sae: What on Earth are you doing?

Aapo: Well… when you put the bacon on their plates, it’ll be easier for you to put it on if it's on your side, yeah?

Sae: Suppose so. Hurry up and get to work and stop making conversation. We have people to feed.

Aapo: Okay!!

**The next hour or so is basically just me making eggs, putting them on a plate, bringing it to Sae’s side, and then him putting the bacon on the plate.**

**I honestly think we work pretty well as a team, even if he doesn't really think so.**

**As time passes on, the faster we have to work. I almost forget that we're on a time constraint at some points, because we just… flow really well? I don't know if that's the right way to phrase it, but… yeah.**

**Eventually, though, we finish up, and we both sigh in relief. I check the time on my tablet, and we have about… maybe another fifteen minutes until everyone else wakes up.**

Sae: We need to wash these pans, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: I… suppose we do.

Sae: Give me the one you were using, I’ll wash it for you.

**Actually, I have a better idea.**

Aapo: Actually, give me your pan. I’m gonna wash it.

Sae: No, I need to-

Aapo: What _you_ need to do is to take a shower. We've been here for a few days, right? You’ve also been wearing the same clothes…

Sae: Are you saying that I smell bad or something?

Aapo: No! That's not what I meant by that, sorry.

Aapo: I just want you to change your clothes and get clean, Sae-sama. Hygiene is very important, you know!!

Sae: I know…

Sae: Are you really sure you wanna wash the pan for me? 

Aapo: Of course I am! Go take a shower, and I’ll get everything here set up. When you get back, we might have a few minutes before everyone else wakes up.

Aapo: If you take quick showers, that is.

**Sae looks as if he's contemplating for a moment, before sighing. He looks like he's gonna cave in!!**

Sae: Fine, I don't mind taking a shower and letting you do some fucking work. Hope you know how to wash dishes.

Aapo: Hey, I’m not that s-

Sae: Didn't mean it like that. I know my tone of voice doesn't help my case here, but I’m joking around.

Aapo: Oh, nice. Okay. Have fun, take care!

Sae: Did you just?? Tell me to have fun showering??

Sae: Okay, I guess. I’ll have a fucking blast showering, it’ll be the best shower of my life. 

Aapo: That's the spirit!!

Sae: [Laughs] Okay, I need to actually go ahead and take a fucking shower now. I’ll see you in a few minutes.

Aapo: Alright! Goodbye, Sae-sama!!

Sae: Bye.

**Sae leaves the kitchen, and I immediately get to work. Scrubbing down the pans, I place them back in their correct spots. I wipe down the counters as well, just in case.**

**I might as well clean the whole fricking kitchen while I’m at it.**

**I'm joking!! I think. I instead decide to place everyone’s plates down on the round table, making sure they all line up nice and neatly.**

**God, that is so fricking aesthetic.**

**It reminds me of back home, and I smile. It's so simplistic, it's so… basic, but in the best possible way. Äiti would always make things like this, probably because we just stocked up on it for breakfasts, but…**

**Let's make this complete.**

**I don't know who likes what kind of drink, but I don't need to. I grab a bunch of glasses from the cupboards and put one next to each plate.**

**God, I sure hope the food doesn't go cold quickly.**

**As soon as I fix the glasses on the table, I grab one for myself and fill it with some apple juice. I feel like a young child whenever I drink that stuff, but it's just… really good.**

**Perhaps I should like… eat before Sae and everyone else comes in. Maybe I’ll get to change soon enough, and maybe I’ll get to like… not sit and eat in this crowded room.**

**As soon as I sit down, though, Sae comes back.**

Sae: Oh.

Sae: You really meant what you fucking said, huh.

Aapo: Yep yep! Why would I lie to you?

Sae: …

Sae: Surprised, is all.

Aapo: Well, too bad.

Aapo: Come over here and eat with me!

Sae: Eat now?

Sae: Are you fucking stupid? Why on Earth would I do that? Nobody else is here yet, so-

Aapo: If you eat now, you can go take a nap sooner.

**Sae looks a little taken aback by me suddenly cutting them off, but sighs as he makes his way over to where I was sitting.**

Sae: Fine. You do have a point, after all.

Sae: Uh… yeah. Don't talk to me while I’m eating. Thanks.

Aapo: Huh?

Sae: Did you not fucking hear me? I don't want to talk while I’m eating. I'm already ridiculously fucking tired from making all that food, I think I deserve a little bit of a break.

Aapo: Alright, uh… I won't talk to you, then! Enjoy your meal, Sae-sama!

Sae: Okay.

**Ouch, okay. That's whatever, honestly, if he doesn't wanna say thank you or anything, that's fine. I don't mind.**

**God, eating in silence is weird.**

**Eating around people has always been something that I’ve never enjoyed doing. It’s scary, to say the least. Every time I say to someone that we should eat together, or that I want them to sit next to me while I’m eating, it's usually just… out of politeness.**

**Sae isn't exactly the most polite person in the world from what I’ve seen, but I’d feel even worse if he was just… sitting across from me eating. Or worse… not eating at all and just watching me eat instead.**

**I know I told Sae I wouldn't talk, but god this is beyond bearable. I feel like I’m going to start crying sometime soon.**

**I can't manage to get a word out of my mouth, though. Instead, I just kinda… swing my foot around. Aggressively. Very aggressively. Is that even how I’m supposed to describe it? More accurately, I’m swinging my foot around rapidly.**

**Thankfully, though, I finish up and quickly move away to wash the dish and put in away. Sae gives me a weird look, and it's just making this all so much worse.**

**I hear footsteps coming down the hall. Thank god. Whoever it is, they enter the kitchen and gasp.**

???: Oh... wonderful.

**I turn around to see both Nagai and Tetsuya standing in the doorway.**

Tetsuya: Heikkinen-san, did you do all of this?

Aapo: Uh…

Nagai: My gods, I thought you said you didn’t know how to cook! Perhaps that was just a lie, though…

Aapo: It’s not, uh…

Tetsuya: Thank you, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: Guys, I’m not the only one who made it! Sae-sama was the one with the idea, and he was the one who even taught me how to make anything…

Aapo: You should thank him, too…

**They both look a little skeptical of me. God, I hope they don’t think I’m lying. I look over to Sae, who is just looking down and trying to finish eating. He deserves some of the praise for this, and the fact that they were just… ignoring him made me kind of mad!**

**I don’t know if it’s obvious or not, but like… Sae did most of the work anyway.**

Nagai: If that’s so, then… thank you, Sae-sama. Your work here is quite appreciated.

Tetsuya: Yeah. I’m surprised anyone here would wake up just to cook breakfast for everyone, so… You’ve probably had to have… had to have been awake for a while now. 

Sae: Yeah. Heikkinen-san and I have been awake since six. 

Nagai: PM or AM?

Sae: I…

Sae: Are you seriously asking me that?

Nagai: Uh… yeah? I am…

Nagai: I’ve heard that you don’t exactly sleep a lot from-

**This is going to cause a fight, I need to stop this from happening now!!**

Aapo: HEY CAN YOU GO WAKE EVERYONE UP FOR US? NOBODY WANTS TO EAT COLD FOOD.

**That came out a lot louder than I expected it to, but hopefully, it works.**

Nagai: You wanna quiet down? Dear gods, you could have woken everyone up right then and there.

Aapo: Ahh, sorry… I don’t know what just overcame me, haha…

Aapo: Seriously, though, you guys should probably go wake everyone else up… 

Nagai: I mean… if you want us to, we shall.

Tetsuya: I don’t see why you can’t do it, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: Well, uh…

Aapo: Sae and I planned to go back to bed for a little since we both woke up pretty early, and we’re tired…

Tetsuya: You did?

Naai: You did??

Sae: We did???

Aapo: Yeah, we did! Which is why you need to finish eating while they wake everyone else. Sae-sama and I can wake up Nao-san and Mihara-san when we go to sleep, but yeah… 

Nagai: Uh… okay, my friend. Let’s go, Tetsuya-kun.

Tetsuya: Alright. I'll talk to the two of you later. Goodbye.

**With that, Nagai and Hara leave the kitchen, and Sae glares at me. Yikeies…**

Sae: The fuck was all that about?

Aapo: Uh… what do you mean?

Sae: Telling those two idiots we had plans to go to sleep. The yelling. The, I don’t know, literally everything that just happened?

Aapo: They were about to uh… talk about Nao-san, and I know that mentioning them makes you upset, so… Yeah. I didn’t really wanna upset you or have anything upset you, so…

Sae: You don’t make any fucking sense. Like…

Sae: I guess it makes sense? We aren’t like… 

Aapo: You don’t have to be friends with people to be nice and stick up for them, you know.

Aapo: Besides, even if I didn’t like you, I wouldn’t want you to be sad! Especially over the like… them only thanking me at first thing. 

Sae: To be fair, it didn’t exactly look like I was doing much besides eating. 

Sae: ...and I don’t like being thanked that much to begin with, so… 

Aapo: Why not? 

**That’s honestly super strange. If I did something nice, I would want to be thanked!**

**…**

**I keep forgetting that I’m not the only person in the world. Yikes. Even then, it still doesn’t exactly make sense to me…**

**Sae doesn’t seem like he has an answer either, as he just looks down and continues eating. I feel bad now.**

Aapo: Sorry, I’m just… yeah. Do you want me to just go on ahead or wait for you or something? 

Sae: I mean…

Sae: Not like there’s a fucking reason to wait. 

Sae: I’ll talk to you later, sleep well or some shit.

**Sae then freezes, and I start giggling.**

Aapo: I’ll have the best sleep now!! Since Sae-sama said so, I have to, don’t I?

Sae: I hope you trip over air, I… that just came out, I didn’t mean it. I meant to say that I hope you sleep terribly and both sides of your pillow are warm.

**Every day that I spend here, the worse and worse he gets at acting. How many days had it been by now? Only a few at most, but man…**

Aapo: Okay, Sae-sama. I’ll have the worst sleep of my life!!

Sae: Good. Go on and do that already.

Aapo: Got it! Enjoy the rest of your meal.

Sae: Never.

**I bet he will.**

**Anyway, I exit the kitchen and head down to my dorm. That was certainly an experience, but I wouldn’t mind doing it again. For now, though, I need to wake up Nao and Mihara so that they don’t have to eat cold food.**

**Entering the room, I take a look at the two of them. Now, I could be nice and just wake them up, or I could act like Ko and scare them…**

**I cannot physically make myself be mean to them. I go over and nudge Nao.**

Aapo: Hey there, Nao-san.

Nao: …

**No response. Great.**

Aapo: Nao-san, wake up now!!

**Nao groans and turns over on their side, looking at me with a tired expression. They yawn, before rubbing their eyes.**

Nao: Darling, people such as I need their beauty sleep, you know…

Aapo: Uh… I didn't know that. 

Nao: Well then, now you do. Let me sleep now, deary…

Aapo: I… I can't do that, Nao-san. Sorry, but I don't want you to have to eat cold food…

Nao: Huh?

Aapo: Uh… yeah. Sae-sama and I made everyone breakfast this morning, and you need to go eat before it gets cold… Cold eggs don't sound too appealing.

Aapo: Neither does cold bacon, now that I think about it… Yuck.

Nao: …

Nao: Did Sae-dono do something to it?

**Why do you have to be so suspicious of people… We’re all in this together! We don’t need all this stupid accusation stuff.**

Aapo: Uh… I don’t know what you mean… I was there, you know… 

Nao: He could have poisoned it while you were looking away, deary.

**That is NOT what I was expecting. What the fuck.**

Aapo: [Verbally “???’s”] I… don't understand why that's a concern of yours…

Nao: Well, we are still in this… killing game… whether we like it or not. Sae-dono could be trying to poison us all by giving us that-

Aapo: I… made a lot of the food. I ate some of it, and so did Sae-sama. I’m absolutely certain he didn’t poison it. He really isn’t that bad, you know…

Nao: Dear, I don’t think you understand that people like him are just the worst. I… yesterday, we agreed not to fight because of the situation. Didn’t say that we couldn’t have our suspicions, you know?

**That’s what all of that weird talk was last night… I mean, that’s great and all, but talking shit about him behind his back is just gonna increase tensions by… a lot.**

Aapo: Well, can you not talk to me about your suspicions about him?

Aapo: I know that he wouldn’t do anything like that, and I won’t let him do that even if he would.

Aapo: Talk to TEN-san or something.

Nao: …

Nao: Fair enough. Goodbye now, deary.

**Nao gets up from their bed, still in their pajamas, and heads out of the room.**

**Goodbye, ego fuck.**

**Seriously, they were fine on the first day, but… they're kind of hard to deal with at the moment. Did I do something wrong? Are they just overdramatic in general? I…**

**Still need to wake up TEN. Yeah. That's a thing I need to do.**

**I go over to his bed, shaking him awake. Thankfully, he's a lot more cooperative.**

Aapo: Wake up, TEN-san!!

TEN: EEK!

**TEN sits up after that, looking up to me.**

TEN: IS SOMETHING WRONG, HEIKKINEN-SAN?

Aapo: Huh?

Aapo: No, nothing’s wrong, it’s just time for breakfast. You need to go eat…

TEN: WHAT TIME IS IT?

Aapo: Uh… breakfast time?

TEN: I.

TEN: I MEANT THE ACTUAL TIME, BUT I GUESS THAT WORKS TOO.

**Oh. I’m an idiot. I quickly grab my tablet from my bag and check the time…**

**Around 7:10 AM.**

Aapo: Sorry, I’m just… yeah. It’s around seven right now, so…

**By the time I look back up from my tablet, TEN is already dressed and heading out the door. I need to stop taking my time with this, really…**

TEN: THANKS, HEIKKINEN-SAN! ARE YOU GONNA COMME, OR...

Aapo: Uh, I’ve been up for a while now, I think I’m going to just take a nap. I already ate, so…

TEN: OH ALRIGHT! I'LL TALK TO YOU LATER, HEIKKINEN-SAN!

Aapo: Yeah, see ya!

**With that, TEN leaves the room. It feels a little empty now, but I don’t mind all that much. It's not like I’m going to be paying attention to that while I’m sleeping anyway. I gently set my bag down next to my bed, curling up comfortably.**

**I’m not really used to sleeping in, though, despite the fact I want to. Instead, I end up staring at the ceiling out of boredom. How was I supposed to fall asleep? This sucks… When we were searching, we didn’t find any medicine either. I used to be given some over the counter medicine whenever I found it difficult to sleep, but…**

**Now that I’m thinking about it, it’s actually really bad that there’s no medicine. Maybe that’s why Sae isn’t sleeping? I don't know if he has medicine for that, but it would make sense. It feels weird thinking about him like this, in all honesty. It isn’t my place to ask or anything, so…**

**I physically can’t stop myself from asking. I’ll do it later, though. I’m too tired to do it now…**

**I still can't get to sleep. I’m still staring up at the ceiling. I don't know how long I’m like that, but eventually, I know that it’s useless trying. I get up from my bed, get dressed, grab my bag, and head out of the room again.**

**Talking to people might tire me out, or possibly make me feel energetic enough to get through the rest of the day. The question is… where should I go? I check the time, and it's around nine o’clock. Breakfast is most certainly done by now, so…**

**[ WHERE SHOULD I GO? ]**

**[ LIVING ROOM ]**

**[ LAUNDRY ROOM ]**

**- > [ WORKROOM ]**

**[ KITCHEN ]**

**[ DORMS ]**

**I decide to head over to the workroom. There's bound to be someone there, right? There always is, so…**

**I make my way down the hall, entering the workroom. I knew someone would be there! Sitting at one of the tables were Nagai and Hara, and although I couldn't tell what they were doing, I could tell they were having fun.**

**I walk up to the table, coughing quietly in an attempt to make my presence known. Surprisingly enough, it works!**

Nagai: Why hello there, Heikkinen-san!

Tetsuya: Hello. What are you doing here?

Aapo: Ah, uh… I just got out of bed, so I wanted to go find someone to talk to…

Nagai: Well, you’ve come to the right place then! Pull up a chair, I’ll do your nails next.

Aapo: Do my nails?

**Now that I’m actually focusing on what they were doing, and… yeah, Nagai was in the middle of painting Hara’s nails.**

Aapo: Oh! Uh… Okay…

**I pull up a chair and watch as Nagai does Hara’s nails with ease.**

Aapo: Why are you two painting nails in the first place?

Tetsuya: Well, Nagai-kun and I were admiring each other earlier today, and decided that we should do some bonding activities. We’ve been together all morning, actually.

Aapo: I saw that, kinda… I just thought you two woke up at the same time.

Nagai: Well, you aren't too far off. We woke up around the same time, but that's when we realized how amazing we both looked.

Tetsuya: Hey. You make it sound like I have an ego…

Nagai: Perhaps you should have one! You definitely look like someone who should have a lot of self-confidence.

Aapo: Ah…

Tetsuya: Thank you, really. That's really nice of you to say. 

Nagai: Of course, my dear friend! Now, you said you wanted to have two different colors?

Tetsuya: Yeah! I have to keep up my blue and white color scheme, I think.

Nagai: My gods, I get that completely. I need to repaint my nails soon too, but I don't know if I want to paint over this old coat… After all, it's all chipped and not good to paint over. 

Aapo: I don't know much about nail painting, uh… what do you mean by that?

Nagai: The nail polish is coming off randomly, and it looks like chipped paint.

Aapo: Ah! Okay! Thank you!

Nagai: Of course, my dear friend. I’m almost done with Tetsuya-kun’s nails, so please try to think of a color you’d want, alright?

Aapo: Ah, okay!

**I was never allowed to paint my nails as a child, or really ever. I… have to pick a color. What would Äiti tell me to choose? She would never let me paint my nails, but theoretically? She would go with something that fits my appearance, so… I’m probably gonna have to go with brown.**

**Not the prettiest color, I’ll say. I don't really care, though. I look at Hara’s nails while I’m waiting, and I can say that they're very pretty. Black and white are always nice colors to see together, but Hara just… pulls it off really well.**

**Nagai looks like he’s having a lot of fun as well.**

Nagai: ...aaand done! You need to let your nails dry now, so just… go over there and wait while I do Heikkinen-san’s nails.

Tetsuya: Will do.

**Hara and I switch spots, and Nagai makes a hand motion for me to set one of my hands down. I do so, and I have to look up to him as he speaks.**

Nagai: So, what color do you want?

Aapo: Uhh… brown?

Nagai: Brown?

Aapo: Ah, sorry… I didn't even look at what colors you had on the table, that's my fault-

Nagai: My gods, it's fine. I have the color, but are you sure?

Aapo: I couldn't think of another color that fits my outfit, so… I think so?

**Nagai’s judgemental expression turns soft.**

Nagai: Oh, I see. You don't have to match your outfit, my friend! Tetsuya-kun and I only do it because we're really picky and perfectionistic about our aesthetics.

Aapo: Oh! Well then, uh…

**I can pick another color? I don't know, really. I wish Äiti were here, she would be able to help me…**

Aapo: Can you choose a color for me? Sorry, I'm just having a hard time trying to pick one.

Nagai: Why yes, of course I can! Let's see here…

Tetsuya: I think pink would look good on you, Heikkinen-san. Or maybe like… a purple.

Nagai: Tetsuya-kun’s right, actually! I have an idea. Can you get the pink polish for me, my friend?

Tetsuya: Sure.

**Tetsuya grabs a small bottle of nail polish close to him and slides it across the table.**

Tetsuya: Here.

Nagai: Perfect! Thank you very much.

Tetsuya: Of course. 

**Nagai takes the top off, and I brace myself for what might happen. Tetsuya smiles a little bit, and I look over at him.**

Tetsuya: Sorry, I can’t help myself, I… have you never gotten your nails painted before?

Aapo: No, I haven't… 

Tetsuya: That explains it. Don't worry, Heikkinen-san, it doesn't hurt or anything.

Nagai: Nope! It's not gonna hurt you or anything. Take it easy. 

Aapo: Okay… I’ll try.

**I attempt to stop being so tense, and it only works a little bit. My shoulders relax a little, but that's about it. I take a small breath before Nagai puts the brush down onto my nail.**

**I relax immediately. That was ridiculously safe, what was I even scared about? Nagai is laughing a storm up right next to me, and I shoot him the nastiest glare I can manage.**

Nagai: Hey now, it’s fine, Heikkinen-san. It's just funny.

Tetsuya: Also, you look like a puppy trying to show that they're mad. 

**I've been told that my mean face isn't exactly mean or intimidating before, so this doesn't really bother me all too much. I actually kind of expected it.**

Aapo: Haha, I get that a lot! Anyways… this is cool. 

Nagai: You’d be correct there, friend. This is quite… cool, as you people put it.

Tetsuya: Tone the ego down a little bit.

Nagai: [Laughs] I don't think I will, Tetsuya-kun.

Aapo: I… don't really understand what is going on.

Hara: Don't worry, Heikkinen-san. I have no idea either.

Nagai: We may be clueless.

Aapo: …and?

Nagai: And what? We just… may be clueless, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: Oh. Okay.

**I am barely following this conversation, so I just fall into silence as Nagai finishes up my first hand.**

Nagai: Alright, give me your other hand! Afterward, I’ll apply another coat for you so that it doesn't look weird or come off as easily. Sound good, my friend?

Aapo: [Places other hand on the table] Yeah, that sounds fine. 

**He gets to work again, and I decide to look at my drying hand. Tetsuya and Nagai were right, that pink really is a nice color. I look over to Tetsuya, who just gives me a little thumbs up. I’m glad he still likes it, even after being put on my nails.**

**The next few minutes are full of impossible to keep up with conversations between the three of us, and eventually, Nagai finishes my other hand.**

**He applies the next coat to both of them, and…**

Nagai: Done!

Aapo: That was certainly an experience.

Tetsuya: Heikkinen-san, your nails look so pretty.

Aapo: [Flustered] Pretty? Ah, uh… thank you!! Yours look really nice as well… 

Nagai: Well, I think I’ll just do my nails later. Do you two wanna go do something else? This workroom is too… 

Aapo: Too what?

Nagai: Too unwelcoming, I suppose? I can't exactly pinpoint the actual feeling, but it feels weird in here.

Tetsuya: Kinda, yeah. Where should we go now?

Aapo: Uh… where is Sae-sama right now?

Tetsuya: Sae-sama? He said not to bother him, and that he was gonna be in the kitchen for the rest of the day.

**Odd. He said he was going to go to sleep after breakfast. I don’t really mind, though. He’s allowed to change his mind on things.**

Aapo: You know what we should do?

Tetsuya: What should we do...?

Aapo: Let’s go to the kitchen and bother Sae-sama!

Nagai: My friend, I thought you wanted to be nice to him…?

Aapo: Bothering someone doesn’t have to be bad! We can just bother him until he agrees to do something fun or whatever! 

Tetsuya: Maybe we could paint his nails, too.

Nagai: I don’t exactly know how well he would cooperate, though…

Aapo: Probably not… but he likes baking! Maybe we could all bake together?

Tetsuya: I haven't baked a single thing in my life.

Aapo: Uh… I really don't know what else he enjoys, in all honesty… he enjoyed making fun of a movie with me, but I don't know if that would be enjoyable for you two…

Nagai: I suppose that we’ll just have to ask him which one he wants to do. 

Tetsuya: Yeah… still don't exactly get why you want to include that ass, but…

Aapo: Well…

**Thankfully, something stops this conversation in its tracks. Not so thankfully, it sounds like it’s an intercom announcement.**

Bee: Tehe!~ Hello hello, my lovely students, hehe! I have some very… interesting news to share with you, hehe! Come to the living room, and be there as soon as you can!

**Suddenly her voice is completely deadpan.**

Bee: You wouldn’t like to see what happens if you don't show.

Bee: Tehe!~ Headmaster, signing off!

**I.., forgot that the little fox thing existed for a little bit. I look over to Nagai and Tetsuya, who look about as nervous as I expected them to be.**

Nagai: My gods, can that thing leave us alone already?

Tetsuya: To be fair, it hasn't spoken to us in a while.

Nagai: That… makes it worse, my friend. Let's just… go. For safety reasons. We can continue this little bonding activity for later.

Tetsuya: Fair enough.

Aapo: Uh!! Yeah, let's… go.

**The three of us exit the room. Fortunately (or not, I’m not exactly sure if it is), the living room isn't too far away from here. There are a few people like Junpei and Sora already there, so Nagai and Tetsuya split off from me.**

**I take a seat, and more people arrive. Do and Ko sit next to me, but I’m only directly next to Ko.**

Ko: Heya there, Heikkinen-kun!

Aapo: Hi, Ko-chan! Uh… you surely seem energetic.

Do: I wish she wasn’t.

Aapo: Uh… okay? I wasn't talking to you, sorry…

Ko: Don't mind her! Heh, can I just call you Hei-kun? Your last name is soooo long…

Aapo: I don't mind that, no… 

Ko: Good! Because you didn't have a choice in the matter!

Aapo: Huh? Then why even ask?

Ko: Just wanted to get your opinion on it.

Aapo: Well, at least you did that, I guess, Uh…

**God, how in the actual heck am I supposed to keep a conversation?**

Aapo: Uh… did you two enjoy breakfast today?

Do: It was kind of cold.

Aapo: Ah, sorry… we should have started working a little later, I guess.

Ko: “We?” Who is we?

Aapo: Oh! Sae-sama and I.

Do: …Sae-sama helped out?

**Why does she sound so genuinely surprised by that? He made us breakfast before, it's not exactly hard to believe.**

Aapo: Yeah. Sae-sama and I made breakfast together! Honestly, it was mostly him… but whatever. 

Ko: Awwww, that’s so sweet of him!! I wish I could cook…

Aapo: You can't?

Do: She can, just… barely.

Ko: HEY.

Ko: I can answer for myself, you know!

Do: I know that, Yuki.

Ko: …Then don't answer for me, silly! 

**Normally, I wouldn't join in with something like this. I would find it too mean, and I would feel too guilty…**

**…but you only live once, I guess.**

Aapo: Do-san is so silly…

**Nope, never mind. Do is staring at me like I just spat on my parent’s grave. Ko on the other hand? She’s having a great time.**

Ko: Yeah! Yumi is so silly, isn't that right?

Do: Silly pertains to you and your childish antics.

Aapo: Kinda childish to argue with your younger sister, though…

Do: I didn't ask.

**Ouch, okay. To be fair, that one was actually kind of mean, and not entirely true.**

Aapo: Sorry… just trying to play along, you know?

Do; It's a pathetic attempt at best, and absolutely devastating at worst.

**More people arrive, but I don't see Sae yet. I’m starting to worry a little bit now.**

Aapo: Okay. Have you two seen Sae-sama, by the way?

Do: I talked to him earlier in the kitchen, and he was just in there.

Aapo: Oh… okay.

Ko: Why do you wanna know?

Aapo: Well, uh…

Ko: AWWW, I know what it is!

Aapo: Huh??

Ko: Yumi, Hei-kun’s got a thing for twinks!

**This is the first time Yumi’s burst into laughter since we got here, but I just… don't know how to reply.**

Aapo: Huh?! No, I don't! I just wanna help him be nicer and make friends!

Ko: You can't lie to me, Hei-kun! I know everything about you! 

Aapo: Huh…

Ko: Well, I don't, but…

Ko: That’s beside the point! 

Aapo: I…

Ko: You know I’m only messing with you, right?

Aapo: Cool fact, Ko-chan! I did not know that.

Ko: Well, now ya do! Isn't that lovely? 

Aapo: Yes, wonderful. I’ll be back, alright?

Ko: Oooh!! Okay!! Where are ya off to, huh??

Do: That’s none of your business, Yuki…

Aapo: To the kitchen. I don't want Sae-sama to get hurt because he forgot to show up.

Ko: Ah, I see! Have fun, Hei-kin! 

Aapo: Bye-bye, Ko-chan!

**With that, I got up from where I was sitting and made my way into the kitchen. Just like Do had said, Sae was there.**

**He was… sleeping on the kitchen table.**

**Do never said anything about him sleeping, but… to be fair, she also didn’t say anything about him being awake either. I’ll just… have to wake him up! I think it’ll be fine…**

**I walk over to him, and I gently nudge his arm. He jolts up almost immediately, letting out a shriek. Some people from the living room look over through the window, but I motion for them to look away.**

**Sae raises his arms up defensively, and I step back immediately.**

Aapo: Sae-sama?! Sae-sama, are you alright?

Sae: What the FUCK, Heikkinen-san??

Aapo: I’m sorry, I didn't mean to scare you!!

Sae: You could have woken me up ANY other way, you idiot! Don’t touch me.

Aapo: Oh, uh… I’ll keep that in mind! Sorry, I really didn’t mean to scare you, if I knew you didn’t like being touched I wouldn’t have-

Sae: Fucking HELL, you don’t have to apologize so fucking much, you’re gonna make me feel bad.

Aapo: Ah, sorry, it’s just th-

Sae: You think you would’ve gotten your point across by now, fucking hell… What did you wake me up for? It better not be something fucking stupid.

Aapo: Uh… the fox told us all to meet in the living room, and I didn’t want you to get in trouble for not showing up, so… 

Sae: I…

Sae: Okay, let’s just go already. You could get in trouble for not being there as well, idiot.

**I forgot that I could get in trouble as well, uh…**

Aapo: Well, uh… 

**I can't get my words out, I just do a hand motion to leave the room.**

Aapo: Let's go.

**The two of us leave the room quickly, and we sit down on the couch with Do and Ko. Sae is shaking pretty badly, but I don’t think anyone pays any attention to that. Besides me, of course, because… god, I feel so guilty right now. Ko snickers a little bit, but Sae shoots her a look.**

**Before anyone can start arguing, we can hear high pitched laughter.**

Bee: Aww, everyone made it, hehe! 

Fujiwara: Yeah, we’re all here. Could you hurry up? I didn't plan on spending much time here.

Bee: My my, how… impatient of you, you furry! 

Fujiwara: …Furry?

Bee: Oh, you know! Tehe!~

Fujiwara: I really don't, but… perhaps we can get this started already?

Tomita: Agreed.

Bee: Aw, you all aren't any fun! Don't worry though, hehe! I have something that will be… very fun.

**I doubt that, and I think everyone besides Ko doubts it too.**

Ko: Ooh, I like fun!! What is it?

Bee: Tehe!~ You know how I said this was a killing game?

Byakko: None of you have killed yet. It's annoying.

Tomita: It has been about three or four days. Of course nobody's killed.

Bee: Hehe!~ So, I’ve decided to do something… very interesting! Maybe it'll drive one of you to kill! Tehe!~

Tomita: No one here would kill, simple.

Sae: I mean… I sure fucking hope not.

Bee: Aww, I can’t believe this! Tehe, you all don't realize how prone people are to murder!

Bee: Whatever.

Bee: Hehe! Anyways! We’re in Antarctica!

Yuharo: Yeah… we know that…

Bee: My my, it costs quite a bit to keep you all warm, you know! Tehe!~

Vander: Then why would ya do it?

Sora: Seems like a waste-a resources to keep us here, hun…

Bee: …

Bee: It is a waste, but it's not exactly like I chose your group of idiots to supervise! Tehe!~

Bee: Anyways! I’ve decided to stop all of that nonsense!

Bee: With every hour that passes, the temperature is gonna go down by a little bit, hehe!~

**What?**

**…**

**……**

**She can't be serious, right? We could freeze to death!**

Bee: Tehe! That's the point!

**Oh, did I say that out loud?**

Ko: Yeah, y-you did…

**Even she seems on edge… okay, thank god, I’m not talking out loud anymore.**

Bee: So… if you wanna live and not die of hypothermia, you might wanna get to killing! 

Sae: I… we all can survive a little fucking cold. There's so much shit here we could use to make ourselves warm.

Bee: My, my…

Bee: How well is a couple of extra blankets going to do to stop you from literally freezing to death, hehe?

Sae: I… uh…

Sora: Someone’s gonna come an’ get us before then, we’ll be fine, darlin’s!

Sora: …Right?

Junpei: Uh… I don't know…

Nagai: It seems like quite a terrible time…

Do: Don't think about killing anyone, Nagai-shi.

Nagai: I’m not, my friend! I-

Do: Don't call me your friend.

Do: Thanks.

**Bee lets out a high pitched laugh.**

Bee: Hehe!~ Already causing conflict already?

Bee: My work here is done! Have fun killing, everyone! Tehe!~

**Bee scurries away, and none of us make an effort to move towards her. None of us make an effort to move either way.**

Tomita: Well.

Tomita: We need to come up with a plan-

Sae: How the _fuck_ can you even make a plan for this? We don’t know if someone’s gonna kill or if we’re gonna freeze to death.

Tomita: Well, first…

Tomita: We need to make a plan to make sure nobody dies. 

Sae: [Sarcastically] Ah, I see! How would we do that, huh?

Tomita: …I don't know.

**I… even she doesn't know? She's always so… cool and composed. She's smart.**

Tomita: Maybe a buddy system would be good?

Sae: You sound like my primary school teacher.

Tomita: You sound like a snarky, annoying child said school teacher would hate.

Tomita: Now, will you let me explain my idea?

Sae: …

Sae: Whatever.

**She's losing her cool now, uh… Frick, what do I do?**

Aapo: Uh, go ahead! What's your idea, Tomita-san?

Tomita: Well.

Tomita: There are eighteen of us, yes?

Aapo: Uh-huh… I think so!! Unless I forgot how to count, which wouldn't exactly be surprising…

Tomita: Well, we can split each room into groups of two. Like a buddy system, so everyone is accounted for at all times.

**That sounds kind of smart, actually!!**

Aapo: Ah, I see!! I’m fine with that, all of my dorm mates are really cool and nice!!

**I look up over to Sae, but he scowls.**

Sae: I don't want to do a buddy system. Thanks.

Tomita: You can't just go on your own…

Tomita: Does anyone else not want a buddy system?

**Ko and Nao go to say something, but are stopped by Do and TEN respectively.**

Tomita: Great. So… that means that you all have to pair off. Let's start with… dorm one. Who is with who, you four?

**Uh… I don't know?? I think I’m gonna end up with Sae, but…**

Sae: Like I said, I don't want a fucking buddy system.

Tomita: Sae-kun.

Tomita: You have to pair up with someone.

**She seems angry… Sae can be allowed to not want to have someone with him at all times, right? It doesn't seem like a completely invalid response… but I do see why it’s needed.**

**Tomita’s face is turning slightly red, and it looks like she’s going to explode. Like… literally. It’s actually kind of concerning.**

Tomita: I swear to GOD.

Tomita: Don't deny it again.

Sae: [Laughs] I thought you were supposed to be a professional, Tomita-san.

Sae: It might just be me, but…

Sae: Lashing out doesn’t seem like the most professional and logical thing to do in this situation. 

Sae: You probably need to calm down, right? Act like a professional, right?

Tomita: …

Tomita: It’s not. I apologize. Just…

Tomita: Please cooperate? Please?

Sae: Your pleading doesn’t sound very professional either, Tomita-san. 

**Okay, now he’s just being rude for no reason. Actually, he does that a lot… but she apologized, so like??? I don’t see any reason, even if he is just kinda… like that…**

Aapo: [Whispering] Sae-sama, maybe you shouldn't antagonize her… She apologized! 

Sae: [Whispers back] I’ll do what I want, thank you. Apologies don’t mean shit ninety percent of the time.

Sae: … 

Sae: [Out loud] I… okay. Fine. As long as I'm not paired with Nao-san.

Nao: Yes! I’d rather not be paired up with him either, for the sake of everyone in this building's sanity.

Tomita: Fair…

Aapo: Uh… if you want to, Sae-sama, we can pair up!!

Sae: [Sighs] I don't really think I have a choice now, do I?

Tomita: I mean… you could always pair up with TEN-shi, you know… since he’s also in your dorm. 

Sae: I guess I do have a choice then. Uh…

Sae: What a hard choice, considering I don’t want to be around either of them, but…

Sae: Heikkinen-san is tolerable, I guess. TEN-san is like a five-year-old child, which is annoying. Don’t wanna be around xem for too long. 

TEN: HEY!!

**Tolerable is better than what I thought I was, so… I’ll take it.**

Tomita: So are we _finally_ ready to pair everyone else off?

Sae: Suit yourself, my buddy and I are gonna go to sleep.

Tomita: You are? 

Aapo: We are??

Sae: I mean… unless you want me to be a cranky asshole the rest of the day-

Sora: Sorry, darlin’! ...but ta be fair, though, you’re always a cranky a-

Sae: Yeah yeah, I get that a lot. 

Sora: Sorry, darlin’.

Sae: It’s whatever, really. Come on, Heikkinen-san.

Tomita: [To TEN and Nao] You two can go if you want to as well.

Nao: Will do! Come on now, deary!

**With that, TEN and Nao leave in the opposite direction that Sae and I went. As soon as we’re far away enough from everyone else, Sae stops walking. I feel very nervous about that, but I just look up at him while I wait for whatever it is he has to say.**

Sae: Uh…

Sae: We still have a lot of time in the day.

Aapo: Yeah…?

**Where on Earth is this going?**

Sae: Do you like… have any idea on what we should do? 

Aapo: I thought you were going to go to sleep?

Sae: I just told her that so she’d let us go. I’m not that tired anymore.

**He says, while looking like he’s going to pass out in the next three seconds. That reminds me, though, I need to ask Sae something.**

Aapo: Oh! By the way, is there a reason you aren’t sleeping well? 

Sae: What do you mean by that…

Aapo: Like… I checked around the place for medicine, because I take some… and I couldn’t find any.

Sae: Oh!

Sae: No, I don’t take any medications. I don’t see why you’re so fucking worried about my sleep, though.

Aapo: I’m worried about everyone, and Äiti always told me that helping people and making money are the only things that matter in life! Just as long as I enjoy what I’m doing.

Aapo: And I enjoy helping people like you!

Sae: ...but money and helping others is like… barely what makes life, well, life.

Sae: So don’t like… waste it on trying to help people all the time.

Aapo: Äiti told me that I have to, though! She’s never wrong, Sae-san. So please just let me help you?? Please??

Sae: Uh…

Sae: Fine, I guess. Since you’re practically fucking begging me at this point. 

Sae: No, I don’t take medication, I just have a really hard time sleeping.

Sae: Does that help you in any way? I don’t think so.

Aapo: It does, actually! 

**It really doesn’t, but at this point? I’m so determined to help, I’ll do anything and just take what I can get.**

Aapo: Hmm… give me a second. I need to ask someone something.

Sae: Take your time, we have all day.

Aapo: …Is that sarcastic?

Sae: No, it’s not. It’s not that late in the day, so take your time.

Aapo: Alrighty! I will then.

**I take my tablet out of my bag before quickly typing a message to someone.**

AAPO HEIKKINEN -> DAISUKE HIRONAKA

\----------

Hello, Hironaka-san! Where are you at the moment? 

I need to ask you some questions about sleep stuff.

[10:04 AM]

DAISUKE HIRONAKA -> AAPO HEIKKINEN

At the laundry room with Fujiwara-san. What

do you need from me?

[10:05 AM]

Aapo: Uh… Are you good enough to be around Fujiwara-san?

Sae: Not really, no… Still think he’s suspicious. 

Aapo: Okay. Uh… give me another moment, then.

AAPO HEIKKINEN -> DAISUKE HIRONAKA

Uh… it’s about Sae-san, so I think that I’ll just like… 

Talk to you about something that’s been bothering him.

Sleep stuff, you know? 

[10:05 AM]

  
  


DAISUKE HIRONAKA -> AAPO HEIKKINEN

\-------------------------------------

Sorry, I can't.

[10:07 AM]

AAPO HEIKKINEN -> DAISUKE HIRONAKA

\-------------------------------------

Alright. Thank you for considering it!

[10:08 AM]

**I turn to Sae, smiling slightly.**

Aapo: He can't come anyway, but I have a backup plan!

Sae: Oh? What's that?

Aapo: You know Miyu-san?

Sae: …

Sae: The giant catgirl?

Aapo: Yeah, her. She said she carries medicine on her.

Sae: So you're saying I have to talk to a catgirl to get myself some artificial sleep in a pill?

Aapo: Yeah, that's almost exactly what I'm saying.

Aapo: I just have to... message her and ask where she is.

**I move my hand to the tablet, clicking on Miyu's name.**

AAPO HEIKKINEN -> CHIYU MIYU

\-----------------------------

Hey!! Do you think you can stop by my dorm? Sae-san needs

some medicine for his sleep.

[10:13 AM]

CHIYU MIYU -> AAPO HEIKKINEN

\-----------------------------

Yep yep!! I can! I'll be there in just a moment. :3

[10:15 AM]

**I turn off my tablet and put it in my bag.**

Aapo: She said she'd be here in a few minutes. Let's head to the dorm to wait, shall we?

Sae: A-alright...

**I practically run down the hallway, stopping by the door as I wait for Sae to catch up. His limp is a lot worse than earlier, because he is barely able to take a few steps without looking pained.**

**We enter the room, and I sit down on my bed. I motion for Sae to sit next to me, and surprisingly? He does.**

Aapo: And now we wait!

Sae: Yeah, waiting. So fun.

Aapo: Yeah… are you sure you can walk alright? You’re limp is a lot worse than earlier this morning…

Sae: I’m fine, I don’t need you questioning if my legs fucking work.

Aapo: Now how I meant it, Sae-san.

Sae: …

Sae: It just hurts to walk for long periods of time, I’m fine.

Aapo: Oh, alright. Maybe we can find some kind of wheelchair or something, or maybe a cane…

Sae: I don’t think that’s necessary, but thank you.

Aapo: I’m just trying to help, Sae-san…

Sae: I know you are, but like? I don’t think you should be caring that much, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: I have to, though. 

Sae: You don’t have to do shit you don’t want to. 

Aapo: I… I guess you’re right, but I want to help you!

**Sae goes silent for a little bit. God, why is he so difficult? I don't know what's going on with him, but still... I'll try to help him in any way I can.**

Sae: You’ve already done more than enough to help, Heikkinen-san. You should take a nap while we wait for Miyu-san.

Aapo: No, you should-

Sae: Can’t fucking sleep well, remember? I’ll just keep a lookout.

Aapo: Fine, you win. I’ll take a nap.

**I lay down and curl up, watching Sae as I just… lay there. I can’t sleep at the moment, with the new possibility of freezing to death lingering in my mind. I just… look at the floor and hope Miyu shows up soon enough.**

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**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm sorry for not updating in nearly a month, possibly even more by now. School started a few weeks ago and I needed to focus on that, but now that I'm back into a regular schedule, I can write more! Expect updates to be even slower, though.


	8. Chapter 1 [1-4]: It's Looking Up or Looking Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!! I'm back, now that I actually have the ability/motivation to write! Expect 1-5 to come sometime in January!! I have to do a bunch of drawings, but hopefully I won't be taking big breaks like that anymore.

…

.

.

.

**The next day, when I wake up, I’m cold. Even colder than before. I know that we’re in the Arctic and all, but… this is even colder than I expected. Why is that…?**

**The motive. I’m stupid.**

**I sit up in my bed, wrapping my blanket around me as I look down at my tablet. I have a couple of messages, mostly just from the group chat. Something about dinner, something about waking up, something about staying warm, whatever. I groan, getting up from my bed and heading to the door.**

**Wait, am I forgetting something…?**

**Right. About Sae. Our talk with Miyu… went a lot better than I thought it would. Sae wasn’t too happy about having to talk to someone about his issues, but Miyu understood! She found a medicine in her bag and gave Sae a pill for the night.**

**I’m genuinely surprised she even had some on her. We all had a lot of things confiscated from us, and I hadn’t found any medicine in my first look around the place, but maybe I had just missed it. That, or she’s just really lucky.**

**Anyways…**

**Afterward, Sae and I decided to hang out in the room all day, since he didn’t want to run into anybody else. Was tired of it, he said, and I don’t think I can blame him. We went to eat dinner with everyone else, and he took the medicine after that.**

**He’s not awake when I get up, though. It looked like Nao and TEN were out somewhere else, and when I checked the time, I realized… we somehow managed to sleep in until 11. I get up and make my way over to his bed.**

**I try to keep in mind what he said yesterday, about waking him up in different ways. I stand next to his bed, making sure to keep some semblance of distance, and I begin my attempt to wake him up.**

Aapo: Hey, Sae-san.

Aapo: Sae-san.

Aapo: Psst. Wake up.

**Sae turns over and looks me straight in the eyes, which was… genuinely not what I was expecting? After yesterday’s talk, I thought he would have been able to sleep a little better…**

Sae: I didn’t go to bed, dumbass. It’s too cold for that.

Aapo: Did I say that out loud…?

Sae: Yeah you did.

Aapo: I… uh… You have a blanket, don’t you? I was able to sleep… kinda…

Aapo: You also had medicine, right?

Aapo: So you should have been able to sleep… I don’t get it…

**That’s kind of annoying. Did we go through all of that just for it not to work?**

Sae: No, like… it’s too cold. Even with the blanket. I was just tired but couldn’t fall asleep either way, medicine or not.

Aapo: I mean… the fox told us it was gonna get colder, didn’t she? We’ll just have to.. find other ways to stay warm, I guess. You should have woken me up or something Sae-san, I could have like… given you my blanket. Or we could have gone to the kitchen to get something warm to eat. 

Sae: That last thing probably wouldn’t help, and I am NOT asking for your fucking blanket. You need it more than I do, and honestly? One of us suffering just for one person to have a marginally better time is…

Sae: Kind of dumb. 

Sae: Especially since it was cold even with a blanket, I don’t think a second one would have done much.

Aapo: I… uh… I get that, kind of? 

Aapo: Still,  Ä iti told me to always-

Sae: Be nice to people, I get it. You’ve told me that every time you’ve wanted to justify your unhealthy b- nevermind, forget I said anything. I’m just not a morning person or whatever.

**Unhealthy?**

**Something about that word at all in reference to** **Ä** **iti makes me feel… I don’t know what actually. It just makes my stomach twist and turn and I don’t like it.**

**Sae seems to pick up on whatever I’m feeling, because his face contorts slightly. I need to say something.**

Aapo: I can assure you, Sae-san, that… that it’s not unhealthy, I’m just worried and listening to what my… my  Ä iti tells me.

Sae: You don’t have to worry about me, aren’t you also cold?

**And now he’s just deflecting me. I don’t want to bring attention to it, that’s kind of mean… but man.**

Aapo: Well, yeah, I was, but it wasn’t as bad last night as it is right now and you needed it then, so-

Sae: …but you were still cold. So you needed it too.

Aapo: I could have just like… put on a jacket or something… 

Sae: Could I not also do the same?

Sae: [Sighs] Don’t expect to hear this from me often, but like… that’s concerning, Heikkinen-san. I’m not dead, am I?

Aapo: No, but you could have been if the temperature had dropped faster-

Sae: It didn’t though. That’s my point, Heikkinen-san. Nothing bad happened to either of us, but if something DID go wrong with the temperature, well, you’d be the first to die.

**Way to be nice about it. He does… kind of have a point though. Although I don’t think that I would mind all too much. If my suffering let’s someone else live a little longer, I think I’m okay with it. Maybe. God, what am I even thinking…**

Sae: You aren’t.

Aapo: Huh?

Sae: You’re saying your thoughts out loud. 

Aapo: Oh! Sorry, uh… 

Sae: [Sighs] Whatever. It’s fine. What time is it?

Aapo: Uh… Around eleven. If you were awake, why didn’t you leave the room??

Sae: I had to wait for your sleepy ass to get up.

Aapo: [Huffs] Could’ve woken me…

Sae: I didn’t want to? I guess? We can go now, though. 

Aapo: Uh… fine. Kitchen?

Sae: Yeah…

Aapo: Let’s uh… go then.

**Sae gets up from his bed, and we head out. On the way there, we see a few of the others in the door hallways, just standing against the wall and chatting. Upon a little more inspection, though, I can clearly see they’re huddling up, probably for warmth.**

**They even have blankets? Yikeies, even in the hallways, they’re trying to stay warm… and I’m only now realizing how cold I truly am. I want my blanket too, but I shouldn’t keep Sae waiting for too long, right? We need to eat… but I AM really cold.**

Aapo: Hey, Sae-san?

Sae: Yeah, what is it?

Aapo: Can I go back to the room real quick to get my blanket? It’s… really cold. I could also just go grab a jacket if you don’t want me to get my blanket! I could get you something as well, or anything really, I-I… it’s cold. 

Sae: No shit. I get that.

**This really isn’t the time to look down on me.**

Sae: Just hurry up, alright? Before Tomita-san gets on my ass about not being with my buddy. 

Sae: ...and if you want to, you can get me a jacket. I don’t know if I have one, though.

Aapo: Alright! I will, and thank you! I promise I won’t take long! 

**I skitter into the room again, making my way to my bed and pulling it off, wrapping it around myself. I noticed that I left my bag in here, along with my tablet, which… surprised me. I put it in my bag and I get ready to leave the room.**

**Heading into the closet, I look around and see that… Sae doesn’t have any jackets in here, only vests. I only have one jacket left, since I don’t really have much either or it’s in the laundry basket, but it’s alright. I have a blanket, I can just… give Sae one of mine.**

**Hopefully, he doesn’t mind. I come out of the closet (literally, not metaphorically), and get ready to head outside again. I don’t want to prolong this trip to the room much longer, I’m really hungry...**

**Before I do, though, I realize that there… is something off about the room. I can’t put my finger on it at all, but it’s definitely setting off tiny alarm bells in my head. I take a minute to look around the room, despite promising Sae that I wouldn’t take long.**

**I can’t put my finger on it. Maybe I can later. For now? I’ve probably kept Sae waiting and he’s probably gonna be mad at me.**

**As I walk outside the room, I notice that Sae isn’t the only one outside the room anymore. Everyone else that was down the hall had migrated here, and, well, they’re crowded around the door.**

Aapo: Ack, excuse me!

Aapo: Can I pl-

Sae: You left me alone for like… three minutes at most, and for SOME reason everybody just decided it’s a “let’s bother Ryou” kind of day.

Sora: I mean. It can be considered that if ya want it to, darlin’!

Sae: You sound like Nao-san when you say that.

Sora: ‘S that a good thing or…?

Aapo: B-bad thing.

Aapo: REALLY bad thing, cons...considering that it’s Sae-san we’re talking about.

Sora: Oh! Apologies, darlin’! I can stop that if ya want me to.

Sae: Considerate! Very considerate. I’m taking you up on that offer. Never call me darling again!

Ko: Are you guys going to continue fighting or…?

Sae: We’re not fighting. We solved our disagreement. Are you really that inept?

Aapo: Sae-san… 

Ko: Of COURSE I’m not stupid… T-that’s mean of you!! 

Sae: Yeah, I get that a lot.

Ko: For your information though, we need to get going!! I’m supposed to be making hot chocolate with Ono-chan! 

Sora: Ya didn’t have to wait here then, ya could’a just… left Sae-san behind.

Sae: I would have preferred that to have anyway.

Ko: I… but you didn’t have your buddy with you! We can’t just l-leave you unsupervised, could we?

Sae: Are you stuttering because of the cold or nerves?

Ko: Both! I don’t l-like being cold, and it’s making me nervous!!

Sora: Well, let’s just get goin’ now, then? We can all jus’ go t’ the kitchen together if ya want to.

Sae: As long as the… child… doesn’t annoy me while we’re there. 

Ko: HEY! 

Ko: I’m not a child! I get that a lot but I’m not!! 

**It’s so loud with these two arguing… and we’re not going anywhere. My head is hurting, and combined with the sheer cold? I don’t like it. I close my eyes and cover my ears, desperately trying to zone out. I want to go eat, or drink, or SOMETHING. I just… can’t bring myself to speak up.**

**I really don’t want to freeze to death on an empty stomach, so I try to focus on reality and speak up.**

Aapo: That’s fine!! Please stop fighting now!! Can we please just go!! It’s nearly noon and I haven’t eaten yet!! Neither has Sae-san!!! I don’t want to freeze to death on an empty stomach!

**That came out a lot louder than I wanted it to.**

Sora: … 

Sae: …

Ko: …    
  
**They’re all silent. It’s making me nervous. Why are they looking at me like that? Was I too loud? Did I say something wrong?**

Sora: Aw.

Sora: Yer kinda adorable trying t’ yell! You sound like a baby lion trying to roar!

**Huh.**

Sae: Actually, they kind of do. 

Ko: They SO do! They’re like a little kitty cat.

Aapo: No I’m not? I’m a… I’m a person?

Sae: Yeah, but you sure as hell act like a little kitten.

Sora: Yer’ also adorable, darlin’.

**I don’t know if that’s supposed to be a compliment, but I’m going to assume it’s not.**

Aapo: I thought we were supposed to be leaving…?

Aapo: Like… now?

Ko: Yeah! We can tease them about their soft voice later!! 

Sora: Okay, okay, fine.

Sae: We weren’t teasing! Simply… pointing it out, I suppose.

Aapo: Yeah. Right. Not like what you were doing is the dictionary definition of teasing or anything. I thought you would know that if you… if you know so much.

**That came out a lot meaner than I wanted it to. It’s true though! They’re teasing me, and I should say it. Sae’s looking at me weird, though.**

Sae: Yeah… Whatever.

Sae: We’re leaving now.

Ko: Alright, come on then! Let’s go! Soraaaa-chan!!! Pick me up!!

Sora: Will do, buckaroo.

**I cannot BELIEVE she just said that.**

Aapo: You two go on ahead. I have something to do with Sae-san before we go.

Sora: Oh, alrighty, darlin’! We’ll see ya there then.

Ko: Bye-bye, Hei-kun!

**That leaves Sae and me in front of the room.**

Sae: [Snappy] What is it?

Sae: I’m fucking s-starving, Heikkinen-san. Can this wait?

Aapo: Hhhh… It could! I-it just… I just… here.

**I hold out my jacket to Sae, and he looks just as confused as I thought he would.**

Sae: ?? This isn’t mine.

Aapo: No, i-it’s not, but… I couldn’t fi… I couldn’t find a jacket on your side of the closet, I’m really, really sorry. I just… d-decided that you’d be cold and t-that I could give you mine, I’m sorry…

Sae: …Are you shaking because of the cold or because you’re nervous?

Aapo: I don’t know h-honestly. Are you mad at me? I don’t want to like… upset you by giving you stuff of mine… and I’ve been a little off this morning, so. Uh…

Sae: I…

**Sae takes the jacket out of my hands and puts it on. We’re both the same height, but he’s a little thinner than I am, and it shows. It’s a little loose on him, but it still fits.**

Aapo: Oh! Uh… 

Sae: Thank you.

Aapo: So you aren’t mad at me or anything?

Sae: Of course not? You did something nice.

Aapo: I just… you don’t really like people helping you so like… and I’ve been-

Sae: I’d let you know if I was annoyed. I think it’d be obvious. Just… thank you for the coat. Can we go now?

Aapo: Yeah! Sorry for making you w-

Sae: Stop apologizing, it’s fine. Let’s just go now, alright? 

Sae: Before we go, though, I hope you feel better. You’re clearly not feeling the best.

Aapo: Way to be blunt about it. Thank you, Sae-san.

Aapo: …

Sae: …

Aapo: S-

Sae: It’s fine. Let’s just go now. 

**I’m surprised he wasn’t mad at me. Not that I’m not happy about that, but… yeah.**

**The two of us walk in silence as we make our way to the kitchen. We don’t really have much to talk about, and we’re really cold. It’s hard to focus on much, really. I feel like I could pass out at any second, in all honesty.**

**On the way, we bump into Sora and Ko in the hallway. Great.**

Sora: Finally! Took y’all long enough.

Ko: Seriously! It’s freezing…

Sae: I thought you two were going ahead of us? You know… to the kitchen?

Ko: We decided to wait! We were worried about y-you guys, and wanted to go a-as a group, you know?

Sae: You didn’t have to wait. That’s your fault.

Ko: Meanie…

Aapo: ANYWAY.

**That comes out much louder than I wanted it to. Oh well.**

Aapo: Let’s just go now, yeah?

Aapo: We’re all hungry and cold, and I’d r-really like it if we didn’t fight in the middle of the hallway.

Sae: …

Sae: Yeah, fine. Let’s just go.

**We’re finally moving on. I feel so, so dizzy after all of that, and I have to lean on Sora to actually get myself anywhere. It’s so…**

**Scary, being around people like this. I’m hungry, I’m tired, and I feel the weight of everything suddenly crashing down on me. Why now of all times? I can’t… I can’t help the fact that I just get overwhelmed by stuff, but man, do I wish I didn’t.**

**Upon entering the kitchen, I see that Ono is there, along with Vander. I haven’t seen Vander since… maybe yesterday. It’s been hard to remember stuff.**

**Ono waves at Ko, and the two are off to mess with the weird machine on the counter. Probably to make hot chocolate with, but who knows. Sora and Vander both sit at the table, chatting away and huddling together as close as possible. Like this was normal, somehow.**

**Why is this normal…**

**I feel disoriented still, but it’s so much worse right now. I can’t even see where I’m walking, and I bump into someone. I don’t really know who.**

Ono: Gh…?

Aapo: …

**And suddenly, the words I want to say just won’t come out. CAN’T come out, in fact.**

Ono: ??

Ono: You look out of it, are you alright?

Aapo: [Nods head]

Ono: …You sure? I can get Miyu-san to check you out.

Aapo: ‘M fine… 

Aapo: Tired n’ cold though…

Ono: We’ll have hot chocolate done soon enough, alright? Go sit down. If you want me to, I can get you one of my extra feather boas… I don’t have many color varieties though, so you’d have to accept a pink-ish purplish one.

Aapo: You don’t have to. I’ll just sit down for now, you focus on makin’ the hot chocolate, alright?

Ono: Got it. Take it easy, Heikkinen-san.

Aapo: Will do.

**I make my way over to the table, sitting next to Sae and laying my head down on the table. I don’t say anything, and neither does he, and nobody else at the table comments on it. So, I just listen to the conversation that’s going on.**

Vander: It’s not fun sometimes, to be completely honest… 

Sora: Tell me ‘bout it.

Sae: Felt that.

Vander: It’s just… they’re so obsessive sometimes, you know? It’s creepy and weird. Not like I don’t love them and all, but it’s just… I’d like to have some personal space in public.

Sae: Again, tell me about it. Fanbases are the worst. I have so many horror stories from mine it’s unfunny, and also probably really concerning. 

Sora: Ya wanna tell us a few while we wait? Or is that too personal or somethin’?

Sae: Some are definitely a little more personal, but I can tell you some of the more… mild ones, I guess.

Sae: A lot of it happens online, though. I have a couple of stories from real life, however.

Sae: Where do I start?

Aapo: Maybe at… one of the online ones.

Vander: Yeah, that sounds like a good idea!

Sae: Alright, uh… which one do I start with… 

**Before he can say anything else, a couple more people come to sit down at the table. I raise my head a little bit to look at them.**

Yuharo: Uh… h-hi everyone…

**Behind him, Tetsuya waves to all of us.**

Tetsuya: Hello.

Sora: Hiya! Whad’ya want?

Yuharo: Um… Tetsuya-san and I were wondering if we could… join you… because… because we just got here and don’t know what to… what to do…

Sae: Go ahead, it’s everyone’s table, not just ours.

Tetsuya: Thank you.

Sae: Yeah yeah, whatever.

Sae: Can I continue where I left off?

Yuharo: Yeah… sorry for interrupting…

Sae: Thanks.

Tetsuya: What were you talking about?

Sae: Just a story or two while we wait for hot chocolate.

Tetsuya: Oh, okay. Continue.

Sae: So, one time there was an entire Twitter debate on my hair color. People were literally sending death threats to each other over my hair color. I had to come out and make an official statement about its color. People went insane when I said it was both purple and pink. 

Sae: They also had this weird habit of making fancams for me and sending them to me directly?

Yuharo: What’s a fancam…?

Sae: Kind of like… a video that a fan takes of a celebrity that’s like. Close up. They can also just be video montages for non-performance groups.

Sora: I DIDN’T KNOW THAT THOSE WERE CALLED THAT.

Sora: Yer not alone on that one. You’d expect opera fans to not have their phones out during performances, it’s against our rules, but ya know how it is.

Sae: Fanbases are just… awful.

Sora: Agreed.

Aapo: I feel really bad for you guys, h-honestly…

Aapo: My fanbase doesn’t do all that weird stuff. 

Vander: No no, they do. Trust me, all fanbases have that one part that’s god awful.

Vander: You don’t even have any social media accounts, right?

Aapo: Yeah, I do, but I don’t run them.  Ä iti does. She tells me all the nice things that people say!

Sae: She could be omitting bad stuff, though.

Sora: Even so, they don’ really see the bad stuff at all. Not their fault.

**Before we can continue, a bunch of other people enter and sit down at the table with me. From the looks of it, it’s everyone else besides Ko and Ono.**

**I have to scoot closer to Sae to make room for Hironaka, but he doesn’t seem to mind all that much. Hironaka looks at me with this… concerned look, but I just wave to him and pick my head up. I feel a little better now, but not the greatest.**

Hironaka: How’re you holding up, Heikkinen-san?

Aapo: I’m fine, just… cold and tired. Really hungry and disoriented.

Hironaka: Well, the food’s going to be done soon. Miyu-san is making breakfast for us right now, and Ono-san plus Ko-shi are nearly done with the hot chocolate.

Aapo: That's good…

Hironaka: You sure you’re alright? You sound like you’re gonna pass out any second now.

Aapo: I’m good… cold. Tired.

Hironaka: Alright… I’ll let you know when everything’s done. Go ahead and take a nap.

Aapo: Alright… will do.

**I lay my head back down onto the table. Conversations continue around me, but my brain’s drowning most of them out. I close my eyes, and I feel someone next to me adjust my blanket. That’s nice of them…**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

JUDGEMENT: I…

JUDGEMENT: I think this is the room. Uh… That’s the number on the note I made for myself, at least.

**The sound of a dropping bag is heard.**

JUDGEMENT: Uh… I just gotta… find the instrument. Shouldn’t take too long, probably… 

**There’s a clacking of shoes on the hardwood floor, walking around. Searching.**

JUDGEMENT: I think this is it… 

JUDGEMENT: Shouldn’t be too hard… I don’t think…

**They sit down and pluck a couple of strings. It sounds beautiful, albeit very amateur. It’s too loud for the instrument they’re trying to play.**

JUDGEMENT: Those three better be happy about this… I had to practically beg for permission to stay after school today.

JUDGEMENT: Wait, no… That’s not nice, uh… I should be happy that I was allowed to stay out so late.

**They continue, and they try. Nothing they make sounds nearly as good as things they’ve heard online. They keep plucking too hard, their nails catch against a string, they can’t keep a steady pace to save their life. In their own little world.**

**The door opens from behind them, but they’re too wrapped up in their own mind to pay attention, even as footsteps grow closer and closer.**

JUDGEMENT: Ow!

JUDGEMENT: This is so hard…

JUSTICE: Because you’re doing it wrong.

**They turn around.**

JUDGE: YOU’RE NEVER GOING TO GET BETTER IF YOU DO THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN. IT’S CLEARLY NOT WORKING FOR YOU, IS IT NOT?

JUDGEMENT: Hi, [JUDGE]! No, it’s not… sorry, uh… [to JUSTICE] who are you? You could have like… warned me before just appearing there.

JUSTICE: We’re literally in the same class…

JUDGE: YEAH! HE IS.

JUDGEMENT: Oh, we are? I am… so sorry. I just don’t remember a lot of people…

JUSTICE: I can tell. 

JUDGE: THAT’S MY LITTLE PAL YOU’RE TALKING TO! WATCH IT.

JUSTICE: You’re the one who decided to bring me along…

JUDGEMENT: Speaking of… why are you two here?

JUSTICE: [JUDGE] here decided that since I play the harp, I should help you learn it.

JUDGEMENT: …I could have done it myself…

JUDGE: SURE YOU COULD. 

JUSTICE: Either way, I don’t mind helping you. I’ve been wanting to mentor someone for a long time now. You seem nice enough. Plus you want to actually learn.

JUDGEMENT: I… I suppose so! [JUDGE] and a couple of my other friends wanted me to join them for the talent show, and wanted me to play the harp for them…

JUDGEMENT: I just… am really bad. Nothing sounds right at all…

JUDGE: YOU’RE RIGHT ABOUT THAT! 

JUSTICE: Well… you’re using way too many fingers, that’s for sure.

JUSTICE: You’re only supposed to play with your first three fingers… and you aren’t supposed to let your nails get in the way, either. You’re gonna have to cut them or something if you want a better sound.

JUDGEMENT: Oh… I see.

JUDGEMENT: I don’t really uh… know how to cut my nails.

JUSTICE: You… don’t? 

JUDGE: THEY DON’T. 

JUSTICE: Why??

JUDGEMENT: Uh… Would really prefer not to talk about it, haha…

JUSTICE: Ah. Gotcha. Let’s just continue this… lesson? Is that what this is?

JUDGE: YEAH, I THINK SO.

**The lesson goes on, and as soon as it begins, it stops. The dream fades out, and suddenly…**

...

**I’m back, and I jolt up. The loud sound of a door opening pulls me out of my slumber, and the blanket that I had wrapped around me fell to the ground.**

Nagai: Sorry.

Sae: Hey! They were sleeping, asshole. Be quiet.

Nagai: Sorry.

**It sounds automated. Very automatic.**

Hironaka: Are you alright, Nagai-shi?

Nagai: Yeah. Just uh… a little scared, is all. 

Nagai: Sorry. 

**And then he sits down, and I yawn. Sae picks up my blanket, wrapping it back around me.**

Sae: You good?

Aapo: Uh… Sleepy… and I had a really weird dream… 

Sae: Oh, uh… You wanna talk about that? 

Aapo: Kinda… 

Sae: Then go ahead. I’m listening.

Aapo: Alright. So basically-

**I can’t, though. Right then Miyu, Ono, and Ko walk over to the table.**

Ko: Guess what everyone!

Tomita: What.

**Did she get there while I was sleeping?**

Miyu: We’re done! I think I did a good job of making sure everyone got personalized meals based on their needs!

Ono: …and I have the hot chocolate.

Yuharo: Yay!!

Yuharo: Both… Gyu and I are very happy…

Ono: I’m glad, Yuharo-san.

Nao: Deary, that is… quite wonderful and all, but I believe that we should get everyone their food. 

Nao: I believe that nobody here has eaten yet today.

Zenigata: Right.

Miyu: Of course! I need some help handing everything, though…

Fujiwara: [Stands up] Leave it to me. 

Hironaka: You sure? I can go help you if you need me to…

Miyu: I could use more than one person actually!! 

Hironaka: Alright, got it.

**Hironaka also gets up from the table, following Fujiwara and Miyu to the part of the kitchen where all the food was held. Everyone seemed to be at the table, so Ko and Ono placed a cup of hot chocolate in front of each person, including the empty spaces of those preparing to serve the food.**

**Miyu placed a plate in front of me, consisting of avocado on toast, two eggs on the side, and some sliced bananas. It was… definitely a little odd, and not what I’m used to.**

Aapo: Uh… why this?

Miyu: Well, Sae-san was telling me that you were always sleepy! This is the most energizing meal I could make for you with what we have… 

Miyu: Bananas have a good amount of fiber, along with potassium and sugars that energize you! Avocados are absolutely LOADED with vitamins and minerals and healthy fats!

Miyu: You’ll get a huge energy boost from that. The toast is starchy and contains carbohydrates! 

Miyu: Finally, the eggs are your main source of protein for this dish! The hot chocolate that we’re having is also sugary, so that’s an extra boost!

Aapo: You put a lot of effort into this…

Miyu: Of course I did! You’re deserving of a good meal, and energy! Sae-san is so thoughtful…

Miyu: Let me get everyone else's dishes! I’ll be back in a second!

**She leaves. I look over to Sae, who has… a bigger plate than I do. Makes sense, considering he’s… very frail-looking.**

Aapo: Uh… did you really suggest stuff to Miyu-san for me?

Sae: Yeah.

Sae: What about it?

Aapo: Uh… thank you… but why?

Sae: You were having a bad day. It’s only fair, I guess.

Sae: I’d want people to make special requests for me if I was upset.

Aapo: Oh!

Aapo: Thank you… so much. I’ll keep that in mind!

Sae: Uh-huh.

Sae: [Quietly] Thank you.

Aapo: [Also quietly] No problem.

**Should I wait for everyone else to get their food first, or should I go ahead and eat? Some people have already started, but I am… quite nervous about doing so. I don’t want to be judged just in case I’m not supposed to…**

**So I just grab my hot chocolate, taking a sip. It’s warm and comforting, in complete honesty. It’s very contrasting to how cold it is. The sip is longer than I intended it to be, and by the time I pull away, I’ve drunk about half the cup.**

Sae: [Laughs] You were really thirsty, huh?

Aapo: I haven’t eaten or drank anything since yesterday at dinner, cut me some slack.

Sae: Not a bad thing. Or maybe it is. Who knows.

Aapo: So confusing…

Sae: I’m uh… make sure to eat as well.

Aapo: You too.

**I turn back to my plate, and I begin eating. Miyu wasn’t lying when she said this was good for me. I didn’t realize how limited our food choices were, and I really believe that she did well for what she had to work with.**

**More people around me are starting to eat, and Hironaka returns with his own food, along with Fujiwara. Miyu returns at last, and now everyone’s all together at the table. Some of the people have blankets like I do, but Tetsuya has… more than one. Doesn’t really surprise me, though. He looks sickly and frail.**

**I realize I’m feeling a lot better, though. As I eat, I can feel the energy that I needed coming to me, and even if I’m still a little tired, I can and will survive.**

Tomita: Ahem.

**I look up to her.**

Tomia: Hello, everyone. Since we’re all here together, I’d like to go through our… 

Tomita: Survival plan, so to speak.

Nagai: Survival plan? What on earth do we need a survival plan for?

Tomita: It's freezing cold. We all look like we’ve seen better days. Tetsuya-shi is literally shivering under two blankets.

Tetsuya: I can't help it… It’s really cold. 

Tetsuya: A-Also I have anemia, which makes this a whole lot worse.

Do: Tell me about it.

**Do speaks up for the first time.**

Tomita: We need to plan so that we don't really freeze to death.

Ono: I’ve decided to give everyone one of my feather boas, and we’ll have those given out to people after this.

Zenigata: Hmmm… 

Fujiwara: Good thinking. I can also attempt to make masks for everyone, as the hot air pushes back onto your face, but that might take too long… 

Miyu: Not much of a big thing!! We should all huddle up with people when we can to generate warmth!!

Yuharo: Good… thinking…

TEN: MY HAIR IS GIANT. I WOULD BE HAPPY TO BE A BLANKET TO SOMEONE ELSE. I’M PRACTICALLY AN INSULATOR!

TEN: YOU KNOW… LIKE A HOTBOX.

Vander: I dunno what that means… 

Vander: …but I am SO gonna take you up on that offer! 

Tomita: Actually, on that note…

Tomita: How else can we live through this?

Tomita: Masks and boas aren’t enough.

Do: It’s kind of obvious, is it not?

Do: Just try to stay warm. 

Sae: Wow. It’s not like we’re all shivering with blankets around us or anything. Not like we’re still cold despite our efforts.

Do: …I never said anything about our efforts being good.

Tetsuya: Still. 

Tetsuya: I think it warrants a discussion too. We could do a lot more than we’re planning to at the moment.

Ko: Huh?? 

Ko: How so?

Tetsuya: We could check the workroom again for anything that could aid us.

Zenigata: Heikkinen-san and I already did that though.

Aapo: Yeah, but… there’s stuff in there that could help us.

Aapo: In the storage closet, there were a lot of jackets-

Tomita: Thermo insulated, most likely.

Aapo: Y-yeah. Probably.

**I really have no idea what that means.**

Junpei: So we can just go after we finish eating, yeah…?

Tomita: Uh… not everyone, we can probably send a few people to go get them now. 

Sae: Why would we do that now? We could just… eat. In peace.

Tomita: If we put them on while we eat, we might be able to enjoy our meal. Quality of life kinda thing.

Yuharo: Uh… but…

Yuharo: They might not fit everyone…

Yuharo: I’m too small for a big coat… and TEN-san is very tall…

TEN: I’M FINE! I CAN JUST USE ALL THE BLANKETS INSTEAD! 

Aapo: Yuharo-san, I think that’d be a good thing for you… more warmth, you know? Also, it’s not just TEN-san…

Sae: Tetsuya-san and Miyu-san are both really fucking tall. 

Tomita: They probably have different sizes… and Tetsuya-shi is very thin, I believe that he’d fit in one that is a little small for his height. 

TEN: AND I HAVE EXTRA JACKETS OF MINE IF WE DON’T!

Tetsuya: I’d like that, if I don’t fit anything we have on us…

TEN: GOTCHA!   


Hironaka: Anyway.

Hironaka: We probably need to get some people together and go get those now… I’d say about… six people, each getting three coats. 

**I might be a little tired, but honestly? I want to go do something, it’s kinda boring right now…**

Aapo: Oh, uh… I’ll go!

Nagai: Let me assist you then, my friend! I am not as affected by the cold, so I believe I’ll make a good teammate.

Junpei: I think by default I have to go…

Tomita: Yeah. I’m not breaking the buddy system just for some coats.

Sae: Meaning I have to go??

Tomita: Yes.

Sae: Fuck.

Aapo: Uh… sorry, I can stay if you don’t want to…

Sae: It’s fine, just not fond of the cold. 

Ono: I’ll go, as long as Vander-san wants to as well.

Vander: Uh… well. 

Vander: Sure! Why not? 

Hironaka: Alright, good. Take care of yourselves while you’re out-

Tomita: -and don’t waste any time, please.

Junpei: I’ll keep everyone under control, don’t worry.

Sora: We believe in ya, Junpei-kun.

Junpei: Thank you! Gonna need it with this one here. 

Nagai: Hey! That’s mean…

Aapo: Uhhh… banter should probably be saved for when we go… 

Tomita: Thank you, Hei-san.

**I don’t remember her asking if she could call me that… honestly, though? I don’t mind. It’s a long last name, I can’t blame her.**

Aapo: Uh-huh!

Junpei: Come on, I’ll lead the way.

**Junpei stands up from the table, followed by Nagai. The rest of us all gather around them at the door, and we leave.**

**The same feeling from when I was in the room came back. I don’t know what it is… but something feels completely off. I think I might just be paranoid of something, but for it to happen in two rooms? Weird.**

**I brush it off as best as I can. I gotta stay focused, after all, because a lot of people are counting on me and everyone else here with me. Everybody else is chatting as we walk, but my brain can barely put together the words they’re saying. I’m falling a little behind, but I’m doing the best I can.**

Vander: Heya, little enby! You doin’ alright?

**Why are we calling me out?**

Aapo: Uh, yeah! I am. Just a little cold…

Aapo: Don’t worry though! I’ll be fine until we get all the jackets n’ stuff.

Vander: Alright! Just wonderin’. 

Sae: If you get too cold, I can give back your coat as well.

Aapo: N-no! I’ll be fine, thank you for the offer though!

Sae: Uh… yeah. No problem.

Junpei: …aand here.

**We stop in front of the workroom door. Junpei unlocks it, and we head in.**

**The storage closet isn’t too far into the room, but it certainly feels like it’s taking forever to get there. Junpei opens the door, and inside of it…**

**There are only a couple of jackets left. As in… about half of what there should be.**

Sae: …

Sae: Are you serious right now?

Bee: Dead serious!

**I scream.**

Aapo: When did you get here?!

Bee: I’ve been here! Hiding. I just knew that you all were bound to come checking here for something to keep you warm!

Bee: How fun would that be, though… to have everything be convenient for you?

Bee: So I decided to destroy a couple of them! 

Ono: You're… absolutely reprehensible.

Bee: Unfortunate.

Bee: Live with it! You guys are soooo smart right, tehe!~ 

Bee: You’ll work it out some way or another! I truly believe in you!

**With that, she leaves, running away faster than my eyes can care to comprehend.**

Junpei: …

Vander: Well…

Ono: That means we’re gonna have to somehow split these between everyone…

Sae: Easier said than done.

Sae: Fuck…

Aapo: I’ll make it easier for you!

Aapo: Don't give me one.

Aapo: I can go without for a little bit to give someone else more.

Vander: We should probably jus’ talk about it just talk ‘bout it when we get back to the kitchen.

Ono: Yeah…

Nagai: How on earth do you even destroy that many lab coats in a day?

Nagai: I don't exactly see anything that’s able to destroy them.

Sae: Probably her teeth or some shit.

Aapo: Yeah… can we go? We promised not to take too long…

Junpei: Probably should.

**We’re off again. The walk back isn’t as talkative, and it's nearly unbearable with how silent it is.**

**It makes me wonder.**

**What on Earth did we even do to deserve this? I’m gonna feel so guilty about not giving people a jacket… but what can we even do in this situation?**

**It's really annoying if I’m being completely serious.**

**We head back into the kitchen, and everyone turns to look at us, some more visibly confused than others.**

**Time to break the bad news to them…**

Tomita: Uh…

Sae: Bitch fox destroyed half of them.

Fujiwara: Great… 

Ko: Awww!! Are you kidding me??

Sora: What's the point’a even gettin’ em’ then?

Aapo: Only about half of us are gonna get them… and the other half is g-gonna have to find another way to stay warm…

Hironaka: Well, if we have to give them away to some but not others…

Hironaka: Tetsuya-san and Yuharo-san are top of the list, since they need it more than we do. TEN-shi is going to get any extras jackets of xyrs. 

Tetsuya: I’m f… I’m f-

Hironaka: No, you're not. You're getting one whether you want to or not.

Tetsuya: Fine.

Sae: I have a jacket on me at the moment, so I’ll be fine.

Hironaka: Good to know.

Miyu: Also! I’m not gonna take one either!

Miyu: I gotta make sure all of you are safe first…

Hironaka: You’re like a mom.

Miyu: That’s what I strive to be!! 

Miyu: It’s just natural, ya know?

Sora: I get that, darlin’.

Tomita: At least we know who to exclude, as… hard of a decision. 

Tomita: Let’s go ahead and get the rest of this sorted out, then.

**The jackets are handed out over the next few minutes. There’s a small debate over who gets them, but eventually, we come to an agreement.**

**Ko, Yuharo, Tetsuya, Sora, Ono, Do, Vander, and Zenigata get one. TEN gives their extra jacket to Tetsuya, as he’s still shivering.**

Tomita: How are all of you feeling?

Yuharo: A… little bit better… 

Zenigata: It’s… well… 

**It doesn’t help as much as we thought, but it’s the best we can do for now.**

**I also have one, much to my own dismay. It helps marginally, but it still sucks. Afterward, though, we finally get to sit back down and eat the rest of our breakfast. No interruptions, just breakfast. There’s some small conversation, and I decide it’s probably best for me to sit out this time, as I’m already not feeling the best.**

**We don’t leave for a while. We actually end up staying in the kitchen for most of the day, huddled up in a desperate attempt to stay warm. Eventually, though, people start to leave with their partners.**

**Sae and I are the last two left, and by the time we actually leave the kitchen, it’s around five. I can't really read my tablet all too well at the moment, to be completely honest.**

**It's very boring when you're freezing cold. Trust me, I have experience. Sae and I decide to hang out in the living room, just trying to keep as warm as we can.**

**Speaking of…**

**He’s being a lot nicer to me! I don't know if it's just because I'm the only person he can stand, but I’m not complaining. It's nice to just… rant, with him. He’s been a surprisingly fun partner for this whole buddy system!**

**I look over to him again for the third time since we’ve sat down, and… he looks very out of it. I… honestly don't blame him! I’m incredibly out of it too.**

Aapo: Hey, are you uh… are you okay still?

Sae: Am I okay…?

Sae: As good as I can be. Which is pretty bad.

Aapo: As good as you can be is better than… better than not good at all.

Sae: I can't believe you're still trying to focus on the bright side of this.

Aapo: Well… I have to! For the sake of e-everyone.

Sae: Well…? You shouldn't have to. Sometimes you just deserve to be angry at the bad things that happen.

Sae: …Idea.

Sae: Trust me on this. I wanna try something.

Aapo: Uh… okay?

**I have no idea where this could be going.**

Sae: Thank you. Now… 

Sae: Tell me a bad thing that's happened recently. Like… something awful. Something you’re really upset or mad about.

Aapo: Uh… why??

Sae: Just do it, please.

Aapo: Well… 

Aapo: I don’t… I don’t know.

Sae: You do, Heikkinen-san. Today has been awful, there must be something you’re just… wanting to talk about, right?

Aapo: Uh…

Aapo: Actually…. I’ve felt this weird feeling every time I’ve uh… walked into a r-room. I don’t know if I’m just like… paranoid or something, but it feels like I’m being… watched. Or something.

Aapo: Then there w-was the whole thing earlier with the coats earlier…

Aapo: …a-and not to mention that this whole situation just… just kinda sucks! I wanna go home. Like…

Aapo: Really wanna go home. I don’t know if  Ä iti is okay or anything, and I’m just… I want to be home and warm.

Aapo: I…

Aapo: …

**There’s a small silence.**

Sae: There we go. 

Sae: That… actually went a lot better than I thought it would.

Sae: The entire point was to get you to rant about what’s making you mad, because you’re… surprisingly bad at complaining.

Sae: Never thought you had it in you, really.

Aapo: Uh…

Aapo: Y-you knew I could do that anyway… if I wanted to… 

Sae: … 

Sae: Yeah, I did…

Sae: [Sighs] I’m just really fucking bored. I don't know what I’m even doing.

Aapo: Fair enough… Do you wanna go bother p-people?

Aapo: Not like! Actually bother people, b-but…

Sae: No no, I get what you mean. Let's go. I want to cause problems on purpose. 

Aapo: Where do we even go…

Sae: Let's just fuck around and find out, I guess.

**I have… no idea what that means. It sounds ominous though, so I’m going to assume it's bad.**

**Sae and I get up from where we’re sitting, heading to the left of where we're standing. On our way, we see everyone extremely wrapped up in an attempt to keep warm.**

**It's uh… it's really sad. I want to help them more.**

**Either way, I don't have time to focus on that. We make a turn into the laundry room, and we come across… a lot of people for a laundry room.**

Ko: Hi y-you two!

Aapo: Hey!!

Sora: Howdy, darlin’ and non-darlin’!

Sae: Thank you.

Nagai: Ah! What brings the two of you to our magical little abode?

Sae: It’s called a laundry room, asshole.

Nagai: You really don't have to be so mean…

Sae: You really don't have to be so extra.

Nagai: This is bullying.

Sae: Good.

Junpei: Uh…

Junpei: Anyway, what are you guys doin’ here? 

Aapo: Oh! We were… uh… bored. With nothing else to do here. 

Sora: Us too, darlin’.

Sora: Us too.

Ko: Y-Yeah! It’s way too cold in here for our own good… 

Ko: Legally it shouldn't be this c-cold!! That fox is s-so mean…

Sora: Yeah, she is. Hopefully, we'll live until rescue arrives, though. We won’t let her get any of us, yeah?

Junpei: Yeah. I hope we get out, because I have a whole life to figure out… really wish I didn’t hit my head or something on the way here.

Sora: Really sorry ‘bout the memory loss, by the way. Must suck.

Nagai: I assume it does as well. Rather unfortunate.

Aapo: Is that sarcastic…?

Nagai: No. That's genuinely really sad.

Aapo: Ah. I s-see. It’s really hard to t-tell when your voice is… voice is like that.

Nagai: Understandable.

Junpei: How about we talk about a lighter topic?

Sora: Like what?

Junpei: Well… 

Junpei: I don’t really know. H-Haven’t exactly planned this far.

Aapo: Honestly? Me neither.

Junpei: We were talking about… something, just a second ago, but I… kinda forgot. Sorry.

Sora: I think we were talkin’ bout’ our favorite myths? 

Ko: Yeah! We were!

Ko: I still don’t… know a lot about a-any of that stuff…

Ko: I don’t read anything other than sheet music! I don’t know what those are!!

Aapo: Oh… uh… I really only know about a couple of… Finnish myths and deities… but I think that’s enough to uh… participate in this conversation…

Ko: Oh??

Ko: Please teach me, Hei-kun! Sora-san is so bad at explainingg… 

Sora: I’m not that bad, am I…?

Nagai: Only a little bit.

Aapo: Uh… anyway! I can’t do any worse than she did, so uh…

Aapo: I can definitely try to, though…

Sora: Go ahead, darlin’! I’d love ta hear it.

Aapo: Alright… forgive me for my language, but… 

Aapo: Hrm… Lempo [face visibly contorts] is the uh… god of love and fertility…

Aapo: He’s nothing like Aphrodite, though… He’s uh… very erratic, and is usually uh… portrayed as such… 

Aapo: Because love can take over and cause destruction.

Aapo: Basically, he’s uh… not well-liked. He has two demon cohorts, uh… named… Hiisi and Paha. 

Aapo: Sorry for my language.

Sae: What part about that had bad language in it?

Aapo: Uh… they’re small swear words in Finnish now… so uh...

Sae: So you cursed. Proud of you!

Aapo: Shut up, I am regretting this immediately!

Sora: Well.

**Sora interjects into our small little argument.**

Sora: After hearing all that… I’ve decided that there is a clearly superior type of mythology... 

Sora: N’ that’s greek mythology.

**Oh boy.**

Aapo: You guys were talking about greek mythology specifically?? I would have uh… not talked that much if I knew that… 

Sora: ‘S fine darlin’! ‘N yeah, I think Nagai-kun is the one who brought it up in th’ first place.

Nagai: I did! It’s because Sora-san put on these rather pretty sun earrings and it reminded me of Apollo.

Nagai: Apparently, that's actually what they were based on! 

Sora: Yep! It's a fun little thing I like t’ study in my free time. 

Sora: I really wish they had a library in here…

Sae: Our kidnappers aren't that nice.

Sae: Trust me, I wanted a library as well. It’s so boring having nothing to do. We should file a complaint to that little fox bitch until we get one. 

Sae: If we’re gonna be stuck here, we might as well be comfortable as all hell.

Sora: I like yer thinkin’!

**The rest of the time is spent venting about Bee, talking about Greek mythology, way too many gay jokes to be considered healthy, and just… a lot of fun despite our circumstances.**

**Eventually, though, it gets late. The four of us get a message around seven that dinner's ready, and we all head out as one big group.**

**Miyu was on cooking duty again. Once again, she put a lot of thought into it.**

Aapo: Uh… what’s this?

Miyu: That’s to help you sleep later! It’s very cold, and it’s very distracting, so…

Miyu: There’s a glass of warm milk, which most people know helps with sleep!

Miyu: I have a couple of crackers, plus a couple slices of cheese! Carbohydrate-rich foods tend to help more, as well as dairy products! It’s very light, as more food means that it’ll take longer to digest, and it’ll keep you up later!

Miyu: There’s nothing with an excessive amount of caffeine, or anything spicy either! Hopefully, you’ll have an easier time sleeping!

Miyu: Sae-san got the same!! Except he’s getting medicine, because you want to take medicines at a consistent time!

Aapo: Oh! Uh… thank you so much! You put so much effort into this stuff for us…

Sae: Yeah uh… thanks.

**She gave Sae another pill, and the two of us decided to eat in our dorm, since both of us are socially drained. We both sit on our respective beds, and take a while to eat. It's really hard to function when it's freezing cold.**

**We talk for a little bit while we do.**

Aapo: So, uh…

Aapo: Do you wanna do something while we eat?

Sae: Uh… like what…?

Sae: Heikkinen-san, I’m just gonna be honest-

Aapo: Oh! That uh… that reminds me.

Aapo: Uh… you know how you go by Sae-san, instead of Saemonsaburou-san…?

Sae: Uh… yeah??

Aapo: Could you uh… please call me uh…

Aapo: Hei-san? It’s shorter, and uh… easier to say.

Sae: Oh.

Sae: Gotcha, I can do that.

Sae: As I was saying…

Sae: I’m honestly just… really tired. I don’t have any more energy in me to do more stuff.

Aapo: Okay! That’s fine, I was just asking, since uh… eating in silence is very uncomfortable… 

Sae: If you want to, we can like… 

Sae: Turn on the TV and pop in a movie for background noise. No need to talk or watch it.

Aapo: Uh… yeah! That sounds fine…

**I walk over to the small TV, grabbing one of the very limited movies we’ve been given. I can’t even read what it’s called, but I don’t really mind. I put it into the movie player, and I have background noise now.**

Sae: Alright.

Sae: Let’s just finish eating now. I’m fucking tired and I wanna go to bed.

Aapo: Got it.

**We eat the rest of our dinner in silence, with only the quiet TV noise in the background. It feels nice, really. It’s cold, so I wrap my blanket around me even more. Sae sees me do this, I think, because he does the same!**

**We finish after a while, and I stand up to take my plate back to the kitchen, but Sae stops me.**

Sae: Let me take it for you. You’ve been uh… doing a lot for everyone, you know?

Aapo: [Joking] What a gentleman. 

Sae: I will be immediately revoking my statement, take your plate back yourself.

Aapo: No!! I’m sorry!!

Sae: [Laughs] It’s fine, I’m kidding. Don’t expect me to do this often, but like… you’re the only tolerable person here so this is like? A thank you to that.

Aapo: [Handing him the plate] Oh! Uh… thank you? To be completely honest I was… not expecting you to warm up to me that easily? 

Aapo: I’m not complaining! You’re fun when you aren’t around people that make you upset.

Sae: Ahh…

Sae: That’s very on-brand of you, Hei-san. You’re too nice for your own good.

**He takes the plate from my hand, as well as my glass. With that, he leaves the room.**

**I really hope that Tomita doesn't chew him out for breaking the buddy system.**

**While I wait, I decide to get on my tablet again. Just to check my messages and whatnot…**

**The group chat is kind of annoying. I’ve already turned off notifications for it, because it’s just… blowing up my tablet. Very badly. If someone needs me, they can like… message me personally.**

**While I’m doing that, I hear the door open again, Sae walks over to me.**

Sae: You really should have come with me. Tomita-san was SO pissed.

**Ah. I see.**

Aapo: Oh! Uh… sorry, Sae-san… 

Sae: It's fine, really. She can chew me out all she wants, but you were tired and cold.

Aapo: I still should have come… I had a feeling that was going to happen.

Sae: Still… it's fine. She would probably complain even if you were there. The two of us just… really don't get along. At all.

Sae: Besides, you’re tired. We're tired. We deserve a break, don’t we?

Aapo: Uh… you do! 

Aapo: You should probably get to bed, man.

Sae: Only if you do as well. 

Sae: I… yeah. You deserve a break more than I do, to be completely honest. 

Aapo: Oh! Uh… sure thing! We can definitely do that… but I don’t think either of us is more deserving or anything… 

Aapo: I just know I’m not gonna sleep well tonight.

Sae: Me neither.

Sae: Still gotta fuckin’ try though.

**I get as comfortable as I can in my bed, and I hear Sae shuffle around in his.**

Sae: Goodnight.

Aapo: Nighty night…

**I say, knowing full well I'm not going to sleep.**

**I stare up at the ceiling for a couple of minutes (or hours, I can't really tell at this point), and yet I still can't go to sleep, for some odd reason.**

**It's not actually odd. It's way too cold in this fucking room.**

**Eventually, though, I do manage to fall into a peaceful sleep. Kind of. It's a weird state of sleep and non-sleep, but still…**

**.**

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**.**

**.**

**I’m quickly awakened from my slumber by a loud sound coming from outside the room.**


End file.
